


Overlord: The Two Sisters of Youth

by Chesteng



Category: Overlord - Maruyama Kugane & Related Fandoms
Genre: Action, Adventure, Gen
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-08-24
Updated: 2017-10-09
Packaged: 2018-12-19 09:33:07
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 5
Words: 23,703
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/11894922
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Chesteng/pseuds/Chesteng
Summary: Since Arche's disappearance, alongside with her group 'Foresight', her younger sisters Kuuderika and Uleirika are faced with a multitude of difficult decisions that would mold their way into an existence without any assistance from their older sister. As tragedy unfolds, even the small and insignificant children could bare fangs worthy of rivaling Princess Renner's unparalleled intellect.Set in Volume 10: The Ruler of Conspiracy





	1. Prologue

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Welp, didn't actually think I was going to go through with this story but after re-reading every volume of Overlord... had to say that their story was the most tragic of all side characters and they appear to be foreshadowing something because as we all know, Arche became something of an undesired role for Shalltear. But who knows! Maybe I'm just too sentimental for minor characters. I hope they deserve the happy ending they need (as for my story, maybe they will)

In the innermost center of the Baharuth Empire’s Capital, Arwintar, held a high-class residential district containing exquisite mansions lined up neatly. One strolling through the area could easily tell that this was the aristocrat's territory, not of land, but influence. It would be an insult to the artisans if one didn’t pause to soak up the elegant craftsmanship. There was no one in sight, however, as Jivcniv Rune Farlord el Nix, more commonly known as the Blood Emperor, purged most of the inhabitants for their incompetence hence the area had been mostly abandoned.

There had come footsteps walking along the cobblestone path, not one, but tens each stepping in utter dissonance due to their hulking bodies. It was a strange sight to see people of an unfitting status act as if they owned these luxurious mansions but it was far more strange was to say they didn’t. They passed several unkempt mansions to which deteriorated to shambles by the hundredth time they had seen it but none changed their expressions.

“You two, head around back. No one escapes.”

“You got it, boss.”

As the order went flying, so did the two who had been instructed to go. With their massive bodies capable of withstanding pulsating muscles, it should have been unnatural to not make a sound while trying to avoid the poorly kept house exterior though it was more proof of their abilities to remain undetected.

Entering the hardly trimmed lawn, equipped with a barely functioning gate, the men headed straight to the door. With brisk steps, they arrived without making much sound and one of them proceeded to knock with such vigor.

They waited for what seemed like moments in the upcoming brutality that awaited the residents for ignoring their payments. Eventually, the one who knocked had grown impatient and looked to the others with him.

“As for the rest of us, haul back everything here. These ‘customers’ had breached their end of the contract and will deal with me.”

The group nodded in agreement as they understood the severity of breaking a contract with them. It was rather simple, if the customer fails to pay their loan back, everything would be repossessed. In the Empire, it was frowned to do such work but there existed a company to lend an absurd amount of gold in exchange for a later recompense at an interest. Those who possessed a concrete understanding of common sense, they could easily tell that their interest rates were unbelievably high therefore dissuading all temptations. There was another important detail that they couldn’t agree to as well, however, there were those who were unable to discern themselves because of selfish matters.

The man who stood in front of the door began to kick the door with force. It hadn’t mattered to him that the intricately designed door would be torn down into pieces or that the shimmering gold lock would break from the pressure. His objective was to regain the lost assets through whatever means. Without much retaliation, the door fell to the hardwood floors with ease.

“Alright, everyone. Begin packing up.”

He signaled the other men to start reclaiming the lavish decorations that littered the walls, the extravagant furniture that appeared to accumulate dust, and the blue teaware that remained motionless at the table nearby. While they were busying themselves with appraising things that were deemed more valuable than the others or deciding whether or not to begin with the heaviest valuables, the man had scanned the area.

Upon inspection, he saw that the occupants probably deserted this house not too long ago because the teapot dripped with an invigorating smell. Of course, one could deduce that there was no longer anybody present but only someone inexperienced could come to that.

He beckoned one of them to follow him as he would go around checking the rooms and in case they hired someone dangerous or possibly use something dangerous, the man he beckoned would protect him without acknowledging his own safety. Reckless as it may sound, the man possessed [Martial Arts] that could repel opponents for some time. That being said, they weren’t equipped with anything so in the event they had to battle, they would simply stall to retreat.

His feet led him to check the master bedroom as experience would have it, the most common room for rebellious customers to hide in. The door swung open to reveal a large room furnished with the highest grade beddings, magnificent paintings, sparkling jewelry, a treasure trove of wealth amassed in a single room. Satisfied, he called for a few to commence repossession within the master bedroom. He wasn’t too happy, however. He hoped to see the foolish customers that defied his contract and explicitly ran from his daily collection.

“—!”

Then came a fatal sound.

It was almost soft enough to go unnoticed by regular men, quick enough to go past by the ears of untrained men, yet too unfortunate for the victims. The man’s eyes trailed the sound, eventually coming to pinpoint the exact location to where it came from.

Underneath.

It wasn’t as if he held any grudges against these customers Actually, he came to pity them. The one who paid all their dues was their daughter. He had some qualms with her but soon realized the unfathomable situation she was placed in. Indeed, he initially regretted that there hadn’t been any sight of her but in the end, she was insignificant to him. He came here to collect was should be rightfully his and exact proper punishment to those who couldn't cough up. How they would scrape up the money was no bother to him. If they paid, he would come back next month for the next payment. With simple directions as these, it puzzled him how contractors couldn’t uphold their end of the deal. Of course, he knew the reason why. Perhaps the foolishness of the once aristocrats losing their face when told they no longer had their status could entail the reason why. Or simply because the people he dealt with had no self-control of their lives. What was the truth, however, was a mix of both.

“It’s no use hiding. I know where you are.”

He spoke to no one in particular but to the floor underneath which trembled. As if a hunter found his prey, he forcibly moved the bed, its legs scraped the hardwood floor, and opened a small hidden compartment.

Inside had been two small children who appeared to be no older than five, more accurately speaking, both were certainly five-year-olds. They wore white straight dresses, stained with the tears of the other as they held each other in safety. The tears that welled continued the journey of its previous incarnations and deftly landed on the shoulder of the other. The man observed these two to be their other daughters who were unable to comprehend the situation, only understanding that their house had been invaded by unknown men. He felt no obligation to help them as they were simply bystanders in the entire process.

He thought of using them as ransom so that he could acquire a bit more money from the man who borrowed from them but dispelled the tasteless idea as he despised activity that would warrant as illegal. Instead, he squatted to reach their height.

“Don’t be scared, I’m just here to make things right with your dad.”

Despite his enormous build, he took a small handkerchief out from the breast pocket of his shirt and proceeded to wipe their tears. At first, they flinched at the movements he showed them but quickly accepted his scant generosity.

“See, all’s fine. Now things would get bad if dad doesn’t show up. I know it’s hard but could you tell me where your dad is?”

The small girls took a moment to compose themselves before opening their mouths.

“Ah— I—”

As soon as they opened their mouths, they closed hesitantly.

“I suppose it was too much for children to handle.”

The man stood from his position and proceeded with collecting the valuable materials inside but upon sensing a nervous twitch from both of them, he could not help but be intrigued. He replayed the scene again in his memory and discovered they had slightly moved their heads towards the closet.

He would search the entire house regardless of their assistance but he wanted to relish in the idea of punching the idiot to a pulp. As per contract, they had agreed on allowing them to compensate them through whatever means if they failed to pay. This virtually allowed them to satiate whatever desire they had with the customers that failed and empire law would be forced to accept their behavior due to the contract they signed. It would simply be the customer’s fault if they didn’t hold their end of the deal or rather, the customer would have to be aware of the dangers and stupidly agree.

His throat singed with anticipation as the thought became closer to fruition. He swung the closet doors open and inside were rows of expensive clothing. There was no evidence of a living creature to ever exist in the closet. Disappointment surged to foul his mood but his keen eyes hadn’t forsaken him. Strange scuff marks trailed along the crevice of the wall which ignited his suspicion.

He thought it was simply scuff marks when a person threw their shoes off but it wouldn’t explain why the small girls unconsciously looked at this direction. He stood there pondering what could it mean before arriving at a conclusion: it was a fake wall. For many aristocrats, it wasn’t rare to see their houses filled with many hidden compartments as a way to hide from bandits or raiders. Most of the aristocrats had abandoned this notion in the Empire as there would be no one who could stand against the might of the army’s combat ability so there hadn’t been a need to waste money on such things. Evidently, he understood that the man who failed to pay had planned slightly above his thinking and for that, he praised the small morsels of his intelligence. Had the two girls not shown any fear in their eyes, he would not have found them.

No.

He was wrong. He considered the memory he replayed in his head once again. The girls' eyes saw him more of a person who chose to console them rather than their own father. There was no love contained, only merciless cruelty of an abandoned pup.

He looked over to them once again to confirm his thoughts but the intensely puffed up eyes couldn’t help his search. The sensation of the two staring at him without making much motion did indeed help solidify his theory but he couldn’t be sure.

Nevertheless, he had other business to deal with. His roughed up hands grasped the edge of the wall which crumbled against his strength and slid the fake door open. He witnessed the pathetic sight of a man who trembled violently while holding his own knees. His wife appeared to be doing the same but at least she acted calmer.

“P-Please don’t h-hurt me!”

The man managed to stutter a voice of forgiveness and begged for mercy. The smell of ammonia filled the air.

“Get a hold of yourself! Pathetic.”

The brawny man could only say such words because it was only fitting of the situation. Had the man shown any sense of control, he might have considered not punishing them and would have been satisfied with taking the household items and never doing business with them again. But the shameless man before him was unable to control his bladder and regressed back into a childlike state. Even the wife appeared to be disgusted with his actions.

He decided on upholding his end of the deal to the full extent. He whistled the men who stood standby to come and declared their fate as soon as he felt the audience was enough.

“This is the guy who didn’t bother paying.”

Clamors of rowdiness could be heard in the room as the men excitedly awaited his punishment.

“What do we do to those who don’t pay?”

“Kill ‘em!”

One of them suggested a blatant atrocity that the law would have to take action if it came to be.

“No, we do something worse.”

All of them formed grins harmoniously as if they knew his fate.

“Torture.”

If this company was stationed at any other residing country, there would be severe offenses in doing such an act but the Empire allowed this if both parties agreed to it. Clearly, there was no distinction as who is actually agreeing with this sort of thing but the man who pissed himself agreed to such action. Should he be unable to pay, they were allowed to reimburse them with whatever means. This meant...

“Take the woman back as well, she’ll make a nice plaything.”

She heard the vulgar words of the men but before she could offer any sort of resistance, one of the men immobilized her by lifting her off the ground and into his bulky arms. One could only describe this spectacle as barbaric as the screams of the woman was drowned out by the men’s lust being directed at her.

“Hey! You idiots better not get ahead of yourself, I got the first round. Get everything here, now!”

The man barked an order looked angry but instead was ravaging in his soon-to-be exact revenge. The rowdy men also understood the weight of his words and swiftly picked all of the items of value and departed with them. As for the unsightly man who laid on the floor chattering his teeth, his left temple received a fierce blow and instantly knocked him unconscious. He was then thrown over the man’s shoulder.

The two sisters looked at him indifferently, perhaps understanding that the excuse of a human that slumped over his shoulder was no longer worthy of sympathy. The man sensed their cold gaze on him and a wave of guilt briefly washed over him.

_That woman, Arche. Where had she gone to?_

It was a mystery where the woman who would reluctantly pay for her parent’s indulgences. He regret to say, but she was his benefactor who met payments eventually. Now it appears as if she forsaken her young siblings without a thought but then he remembered her work.

_If I remember correctly, she was a worker. Could she have been killed?_

It wasn’t strange to say workers died because of their dangerous work that sometimes involved illegal activities. But for someone of her caliber, who understood that becoming a worker rather than an adventurer, more dangers would have meant nothing. Recalling his encounter with the group of people who seemed to be her teammates, it would be odd to have someone die. They were just that skilled. Even if he didn’t want to admit, their fighting ability placed much higher than he could aspire to so he eagerly awaited the success of their work as it meant money for him. In a way, this moment of guilt was simply due to the sheer amount of money she managed to pay off multiple times had earned his respect.

For that, he would repay her with a gift.

“Hey, there small ones. I know your sister.”

At the moment they heard the phrase sister, they sprang up with anticipation yet unable to voice their questions.

“Well, not exactly but she helped your dad and I many times.”

Hearing praise come from the stranger lightened their moods albeit only slightly.

“I don’t know where she is and I have no business taking care of you two but the least I can do is give you something to live by.”

He reached into his pouch that hung from his sides and grabbed a meager amount of money. He then gave it to them in their minute hands.

Two gold coins.

Four copper coins.

The amount was staggering when taking into account that the receivers were small children. With this, they should be able to sustain themselves for two months, provided they buy the minimal amounts of nourishment. They looked at these objects with curious fascination as if they didn’t understand the meaning behind these round metals.

“Use these to buy yourselves some food. I’m only being generous now but perhaps I’ll find myself more selfish later on so don’t waste them.”

The two children meekly nodded their head to show they understood his menacing intent. The man didn’t say another word nor did he look back as he promptly left the mansion to decline further.

The inquisitive stares of the two girls remained fixated on the coins. Hours passed before any sign of movement could be seen again between the two. They looked at each other and barely managed to produce a sound that could hardly pass as a voice.

“Kuuderika...”

“Uleirika...”

The both of them somberly comforted the other by calling out their name in a soft manner. It didn’t last long as the two drifted into an endless night of weeping.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> There are many people I want to thank but I'll keep it short cause I keep doing this for every story I write. There's, of course, someone who kept pushing me to write something in hopes it kindles the fire that burns brightly today and for that, I'd like to thank her very much. She doesn't understand how much gratitude I feel. Anyways, I'd like to thank you for reading this short prologue to a fascinating (at least I find it as) two (maybe three) chapters that document their journey. Hopefully, I can improve as I cannot possibly compete with the marvels of the Overlord series.


	2. Death Renewed

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Whoops, put the story as a 4 chapter thing but I intended for it to have 3 chapters: A prologue and two chapters. (Maybe an after story?) I'll consider extending the story arc if I can think of something to add afterward. By the way, it might not matter much but I've been misspelling Uleirika's name as Ulerika... this is what I get for only two days of editing.

 

It goes without saying that a nation, disregarding its prowess, cannot avoid the fate of poverty. Whether it is a wealthy trading country or midst in its golden age, there will be those who cannot evade the ominous call of the grime struck streets. Although living on the streets provides more demerits than say in a house, the lone wanderers find refuge in the cloak of night with petty thievery engorging itself in delectable selections, unwarranted murder for the deranged, and kidnapping living beings that the world shan’t shed a tear for.

 

However, for the unfortunate lost souls that were unable to find the safety of a home, these dark cowls were the only protection against those who seek to do harm. As such, the streets had garnered two new inhabitants not long ago as their heavy sobbing cultivated the attention of passerbys, it also served as a ward because of set superstitions among the residents of a wailing ghost. The rumors would have been severed should they investigate the source: two helpless children whose clothing now matched the dirt covered pavement instead of its previous pristine brightness.

 

“One... two... three...”

 

The coins in her hands clinked together that would please any merchant but the meager amount left would ruin their mood. She counted three coins. Three coins adorned with sparse engravings which accurately represented the value they held. While copper coins were the least in value, it would still be enough for a loaf of bread or a measly portioned soup.

 

The child who held these coins held them close to her heart. These were the last of their funds to feed themselves. If the stranger hadn’t given them money to survive for as long as they did, they would have perished easily while living in the streets. She then motioned for her sister to open her hands.

 

“Use it to buy...” She paused to ponder about the selection of food that would be able to sustain them the longest but with only a six-year-old mindset, she only thought of basic foodstuffs such as bread, soup, or apples. Even more so, when she first exchanged the two gold coins in favor for food, there would be no way of realizing if she had been tricked. In reality, the gold coins would have been able to bide them a few more weeks than their current situation but her education had been cut short. She only knew their value and how to buy things rather than knowing how to read or perform simple subtraction. Because of that, she had been swindled a couple of times causing their predicament to became rather dire.

 

“Buy some bread from the nice lady.”

 

She didn’t need to mention specifically who it was due to the overwhelming generosity the same woman had given them. Bread that had not been bought will become stale after some time passes so they would then be worthless to sell. Of course, she did have desperate people who were willing to buy them off of her.

 

She watched her sister, a striking resemblance of herself, go into the bakery and leave with two loaves of bread that had become stiff. The two didn’t complain, however, as the bread only cost them a single copper piece rather than the typical silver piece if they were fresh. As such, she had come out with two loaves which meant that they had received an extra for free.

 

Uleirika passed her sister, Kuuderika, one of the pieces that crumbled at the slightest touch. Accepting her offer, they both began to tear them into tinier portions to satisfy their famished stomachs. As their provisions grew smaller, Kuuderika allowed her mind to wander into deep thought. Just a few weeks ago, they were living in the comfort of a house, waiting patiently for their older sister to return, and now, emptiness. Nothing remained from their previous lives except the comfort of her twin. But how can two children manage themselves? There will come a time where they run out of money, unable to feed themselves, unable to find shelter, unable to convince themselves that their older sister will come for them.

 

Arche, who disappeared suddenly, left them to fend for themselves. Granted that they understood that she would leave months at a time but never this long before. She didn’t want to think about the possibilities that had befallen their beloved sister. Her conviction faltered but renewed after hearing the soft comforting words of her twin.

 

“Sis... We have to find Arche.”

 

For the two, every day had gone the same. Once waking up from the frigid cobblestone streets and eating, they went around different areas depending on where they had left off the day before. Yesterday, they passed by the marketplace so they inched towards the colosseum in an attempt to reach the most amount of people. When they finished, they returned to their original spot in between a narrow alleyway that could accommodate their small figures while a grown adult would not be able to fit. Over time, one could see the malnourishment settling in their bodies as there no longer remained much fat or muscles. They had no choice, however, as Kuuderika convinced themselves to portion out their meals according to what Arche had taught them to preserve as much money they could. They nearly gave into the temptation of spending everything but resisted after reminding themselves the words they held dearly.

 

Today would be different. Because of their diminutive funds, they would have to take some drastic action to either replenish their available wealth or approach someone willing to provide for them for some time. She had not gone into lengths of what their plan specifically entails. Plainly speaking, she just hoped things would turn out alright. If not, then surely the night will ferry two more souls into the abyssal darkness.

 

“Let’s ask the people there...”

 

She pointed in the direction of the colosseum purely by chance because she wasn’t aware what a colosseum would even look like but seeing the crowds of people heading towards there gave way for a start.

 

Uleirika nodded to show she understood. The two clasped their hands together and trudged slowly in the direction of the bowl-shaped building.

 

。

。

。

 

“Guards! Guards!” An elderly woman shouted at the utmost strength her lungs allowed. “I’ve been robbed!”

 

Hearing the panicked voice, two sentries manned at the busy marketplace arrived at the scene to investigate.

 

“Calm down, we will hear what you have to say.”

 

Their first priority was to pacify the commotion she made which could cause additional panic among the shopkeepers. If they deem it to be under control, they would begin an investigation beginning by hearing the testimony from the victim. Their procedures were basically straightforward but after the arrival of two dark elves claiming more than half of their elite army, they couldn’t afford to be lax with any sort of trouble.

 

“That little brat! She stole from my store!”

 

Perplexed, the soldiers waited for her to finish with her rant before probing further.

 

“Ma’am, could you describe who this thief is and what they stole?”

 

“She’s with her sister, the dirty rats!”

 

“They? So there’s two thieves?”

 

By this time, the guards had listened enough to understand her story was inconsistent. The pair doubted she even held onto her sanity being as old as she was but doing a small reconnaissance towards an effort to keep public order would permit them to move from their position. It was an opportunity to get a breath of fresh air and move their limber bodies. Reluctantly, they continued to ask further.

 

“Can you describe what they look like?”

 

The woman eagerly explained the appearance of two small children who frequented her shop and how they terrorized the area.

 

。

。

。

 

“Sis...”

 

Uleirika tugged at the hem of her sister’s dress while pointing at a stranger who collected tickets from the crowd. Despite being only born a few seconds after Uleirika, she still held herself to act like the older sister. In spite of this thought, she only moved accordingly to what their older sister, Arche, would do in their shoes. If anything, her memory of her fond sister blemished every day so to compensate for the blurred recollection, she strained herself to remember the warmth she held. That same warmth that carried her throughout the struggles, the same warmth that adapted her survival skills, and the same warmth she desperately searched for.

 

“What would Onee-sama do...?”

 

She murmured to herself so that Uleirika couldn’t hear her weak conviction. The more she thought about Arche, the more it sapped the strength in her knees. She wanted to give up looking for her, she wanted to close her eyes and hope it was all a dream. They had done the same routine every day and found nothing. If they didn’t find anything here, she might lose hope in everything and in doing so, lose her will. She would have to accept that their dear older sister will never return.

 

What remaining moisture in her body was used for the tears gathered at the corners of her eyes. She could only do what she can do presently, ask for help.

 

She waddled over to the man who furiously checked ticket after ticket with Uleirika behind her.

 

“Oji-san, help... us... our sister?”

 

She resisted the urge to completely break down from the sheer amount of stress and spat the rest of her question. The man didn’t seem to acknowledge them at first, busy from the amount of people entering the colosseum.

 

“Oji-san...”

 

“Eh?”

 

Her second attempt successfully grabbed his attention albeit only shortly.

 

“I don’t have time helping little kids. Go back to your parents.”

 

Hearing the adamant refusal made a lump form at the base of her throat. Every day had been the same, it wasn’t as if it would’ve changed from one person, no one wanted to listen to the tantrums of a child.

 

As quickly as he brushed them away, he continued to advertise the upcoming event, “The Martial Lord is fighting today so don’t miss a chance to witness an extraordinary fight!”

 

Dejected, Kuuderika gathered the anger building up within her and dragged Uleirika away. Seeing the anguished face her sister made, she agonized over consoling or participating with her. Being faced with the same course of action intensified their sense of hopelessness as each day passed but after taking some time to vent, they would go try again.

 

“Onee-sama always said to help people in need. So why won’t people help us when we’re in need?”

 

Being young meant that she hadn’t been exposed to the inner workings of society yet which included the lack of sympathy from other people. She couldn’t fathom how not one person could bother themselves in aiding a search or better yet, listen to their request. It wasn’t always that no one wanted to assist them but considering their position, a strange child that undoubtedly lives on the streets wanders up to you asking for help would look like anything but innocent. For all they know, some criminal trained these children to lead them in a dark alleyway to be mugged. The risks far outweighed the small sense of justice helping these children.

 

But there was no way for Kuuderika to understand that. For that, every shun, every cold response gradually increased her pent up frustration.

 

“Kuuderika, Onee-sama would want us to be strong!” Her face defiled with specks of dirt withered away once she revealed a comforting smile, “We have to try again.”

 

“You...You’re right! We can’t keep Onee-sama waiting!”

 

Even if they were deluding themselves with the promise of embracing their older sister’s warmth, this sort of reasoning kept them sane or if anything, they progressed deeper into madness without any recourse.

 

“This time, let’s go together!”

 

Their personalities should be identical but every now and then, certain traits stand out more prominently from the other. Uleirika gravitated towards being more soft spoken than Kuuderika but inversely, Kuuderika was more courageous. When they began to ask the people around for assistance, instinctively, Kuuderika took it upon herself to be the one who talked.

 

It might have been the smallest of differences between the two but it would produce the crucial disparity of whom the brunt of it all is given to.

 

“Annoying little shits!”

 

The man had gripped Kuuderika’s throat, lifting her up to his eyel evel. The man had grown aggressive after being peeved by their insistent questions.

 

“Can’t you see that I am very busy attending to patrons who have money? If you can understand then get lost!”

 

Reacting to his aggression, Uleirika ran up to him and started to hit his legs with her hands curled up while shouting.

 

“Let my sister go!”

 

Her punitive pounds were at most irritating but there was a common weakness among all men which would produce excruciating pain if it were hit. The man groaned in pain but refrained from losing his grip on her Kuuderika’s throat.

 

“Why you—”

 

He put enough weight in his right foot to kick her away, surprisingly, she flew some distance before slamming into the ground and rolling a several more feet.

 

“Ngh— Sis—”

 

Kuuderika heard a dull thump hitting the pavement which presumably meant her sister had been thrown brutally. Even if she were to disregard their weak physical state, a child being hit that hard will suffer harsh consequences, death would be a blessing at this rate.

 

“And you! I don’t want to see your faces here ever again!”

 

He hurled what little weight she retained away from the colosseum entrance and retreated to tend to his prideful injury.

 

The world spun as the wind pelted her porcelain skin before being shattered by the frigid cobblestones of the road. Her blood boiled in anger but without checking up on her sister, she wouldn’t make hasty decisions. Her eyes turned upwards to see her still sister’s body. Immediately, she strained her body to rise up but the sharp pain in her throat stopped her midway. There wasn’t a second thought to it, however, as her sister’s life was more important than the temporary aching so she moved past the pain. Her body would allow it at the cost of hacking up blood though, it didn’t bother her.

 

Her feet stumbled to make the correct steps towards Uleirika but she somehow managed to arrive next to her without falling. Her first instinct was to assess her sister’s condition, tending to any life-threatening wounds would be what Arche would do first. She turned Uleirika’s body to lay on top of her knees, blood stained the grime filled dresses but seeing her breathe normally relieved some of her worries. Many lacerations appeared on the nimble body of her’s with slow warm, crimson liquid trickling down, bruises ran down along their slender arms, and tufts of her hair had been ripped apart. Kuuderika realized that these injuries would have to be treated at a temple due to the severity but without proper payment, she wouldn’t receive the necessary healing.

 

What could she do?

 

Could find a way to heal her precious sister?

 

No, she could not. She knew that. Her sister would die a slow death.

 

Her eyes filled with searing water that stung the small cuts as they traveled down to her dress collar. She was frustrated with how the world treated her, how their sister abandoned them, how her last family would die because of her incompetence, but most of her frustration was directed at her own inability to accept reality. If she had accepted her older sister’s death sooner, she would have taken the time wasted asking around into some form of survival, whether teaching themselves how to steal or finding a suitable caretaker, this path would have extended their lives much longer than it is.

 

“Kuu...”

 

Her sister’s weakened voice caused her hands to move to wipe the flow of tears that landed on Uleirika’s face.

 

She moved her hands to cradle Uleirika and waited for time to claim her sister’s remaining hours. The one final task burdened to older siblings she accepted, she would ease whatever pain she can through the warmth of her hands.

 

But instead of embracing the thoughtful gift, Uleirika pushed her away and patted at her waist. Sounds of clinks interrupted Kuuderika’s sorrow, it was money. It didn’t matter how much they had, the temple would have to accept their meager offering in exchange for light treatment. A thin rope of hope extended to their direction, all she had to do was to hold on.

 

“—A—”

 

She tried to speak but the excruciating pain stabbed at her throat. She nodded to show her understanding and gave her support so Uleirika could find her footing. The two linked their hands while they slowly made their way to the marketplace where a temple resided.

 

Kuuderika wanted to ask where did she get money but she would leave it for later. Her first priority was to treat her wounds. Her own injuries needed to be treated as well but they were only minor inconveniences compared to Uleirika’s blood loss. For now, they trudged towards their original spot, a journey that would take an hour. A thought did, however, come across her mind.

 

‘Did... she steal it?’

 

It was too coincidental for it to be not stolen.

 

‘No, she wouldn’t do that. She wouldn’t.’

 

She refuted the words forming in her mind. If it were true, they were liable to be arrested by the empire knights and would have to face judgment. Even at an early age, they were first instructed of the empire’s laws so Uleirika would have to understand that stealing is punishable by death depending on how much was stolen. Were it a few copper pieces, it would simply be a slap on the wrists but if it was several gold pieces, their lives would be forfeit.

 

As if her fears materialized, she spotted two knights speaking to nearby residents and registered the finger pointed at them. She had only a fraction of a second to decide.

 

“Run—!”

 

The pain spiked in her throat but informing her sister of the incoming danger was worth it. They broke out in a sprint in the opposite direction, leaving a trail of blood behind them. Right now, they had to endure having their wounds opening up further. The sound of heavy metal clashing stalked after them and with every second, increased in sound. At this rate, they would be caught.

 

Kuuderika spotted a nearby vent with a dark colored water oozing out into the sewers and pushed her sister into the gap. There wasn’t any time to think of the repercussions of allowing their open cuts to be infected, this was their only chance to escape capture. She heard her sister scream in pain but it only prompted her to hasten. She used her hands to support Uleirika while they crawled through a narrow pipe. The sounds of metal stopped at the opening of the pipe they went through and disappeared as she looked behind them.

 

By now the water had mixed with Uleirika’s blood, turning it into a mesh of ruby dyed filth. They couldn’t stop moving as it would mean certain death, the tunnel would have to be the haven they wish to have.

 

Shortly after, they reached the end of the pipe leading to an enclosed room filled with cages, thrown over it were white cloths contaminated with an unidentifiable muck. It barely concealed the animal it imprisoned whereas the absence of light served as a better concealing agent. Kuuderika’s eyes trailed a slimmer of light further down the room but the clattering of metal coming from the light made her hesitate.

 

She used her arms to provide leverage for her sister to continue standing as her knees ached to collapse. Her goal was to reach the source of light which might be their only exit.

 

Something about the silence being the dominant sound other than the occasional clash of metal made traversing through the room uncomfortable. The slight stillness of her sister’s limp legs dragging on the floor intruded by the squeakiness of sliding on her blood contributed to Kuuderika’s uncomfortable feeling. Knowing their circumstances up to this point, easily escaping sounded like a fantasy to her. Warily, they arrived at the light to discover it was two heavy doors slightly ajar.

 

Kuuderika needed to scout beyond the two doors in case the knights were heading in their direction. She motioned her sister to wait before turning to look through the crack in the door. Uleirika dropped down to the floor and propped herself up on the metal bars of a nearby cage. She smiled momentarily to allow Kuuderika some freedom though, her smile increased the worries Kuuderika had due because she also closed her eyes insisting on a brief rest.

 

Taking her time to confirm Uleirika would be safe, she used her entire body to push the door open. Although the door didn’t budge as much as she hoped for, it was enough to peek through. Her eyes adjusted to the blinding light and immediately perceived death itself.

 

A walking skeleton adorned with heavy armor and two stilettos equipped at the ends of its gauntlets was making its way towards her. Her body trembled seeing the monster and reactively pushed herself away, opening the door even further. She tripped stuttering backward and landed on her backside.

 

Chains crackled upon hearing the stifling sounds she created eliciting her to look for the source.

 

Standing a few feet behind her, in a cage, stood a wolf looking beast with its soot colored fur blending perfectly in the dark. It stood out with its two horns protruding from its head and the massive chains that wrapped around its body.

 

Barghest. That was the monster being held within the confines of the cage. It formed a twisted smile as if it already saw its prey walking to its cage —no it smiled because it already knew they were falling right into its claws since the stench of blood lingered in the air. It would only be moments before they reached its cage and moments before it would receive an extra meal.

 

Giving no time for Kuuderika to react, the beast dug its fangs into the neck of her precious sister. There was no retaliation from Uleirika as the fangs bore into her throat, robbing her ability to speak. The beast thrashed around, mangling Uleirika’s body. Bones that should be straight broke instantly at the mercy of its fangs. What should look like a child turned into a ragdoll with a fountain of blood spurting in every direction. The beast wanted to continue reveling in its prey but something caused it to stop. Even this wild beast had enough intelligence to understand that if it continued, it would die. In a desperate attempt to get away, it threw the small girl’s body and whimpered away in the depths of its cage.

 

“Shit! I was too late!”

 

A strange man apparated from the darkness and revealed himself to Kuuderika.

 

She would have been startled by his sudden appearance but her eyes stayed on her sister. Still frozen from fear, her arms dragged her entire body across the floor. She forced her nails to break trying to dig into the floor in an attempt to move. Her legs scraped at the rough dirt floor where sharp pebbles perched themselves inside her petite legs where blood dripped straightaway.

 

“—”

 

Her voice would no longer work, whether it was because of the prickling pain that rose whenever she tried or the immense grief she felt witnessing her sister’s death. She exhausted every ounce of her body to get closer, no matter the distance.

 

The man who watched as she clawed her way to the child who laid in a pool of blood couldn’t express the savagery she exhibited. She disregarded all logic just to be next to a dead person. Even him, who lived with extraordinary circumstances, wanted to vomit seeing the gruesome scene unfold.

 

“Chief—!”

 

He exclaimed for his leader before disappearing into the shadow once again.

 

Kuuderika could no longer feel the pain that emerged as she inched towards her sister.

 

Kuuderika could no longer hear the warning her brain kept repeating.

 

Kuuderika could no longer sense the warmth within her sister.

 

It was all surreal to her, an unlucky encounter with a beast which stole her sister’s life. Perhaps the skeleton that’s the reincarnation of death had closed the distance between them and had also come to take her life. Everything. It was all unfortunate. There was no longer any reasoning except that she needed to ease the pain her sister felt albeit only slightly.

 

Her fingers bled as she continued to whittle down her nails.

 

Her legs continued to be cut up by the small rocks.

 

Her throat burned fiercely as she struggled to call for her sister.

 

Her hands plopped into the pool of blood, splashing her face with scorching vermillion. Her endeavor had brought her next to her sister, once again cradling her in her arms to comfort the extinguished life that lay at her knees. In spite of her sister’s death, she did not cry nor was she filled with anger. For the first time, she was calm. A strange serenity encompassed her body.

 

Why was she like this? Did she consider Uleirika to be a burden? Has her body used up all remaining resources in order to develop tears? Perhaps she didn’t feel that Uleirika was her sister.

 

All of these repugnant thoughts littered her mind but she knew the obvious correct one. It was because she could be done. There was nothing else keeping her alive. Her older sister was gone as her twin had followed, and her parents failed them; what else could possibly give her reason to live?

 

A voice.

 

Her ears picked up a voice.

 

“Hear me! People of the Empire! I am the Sorcerer King, Ainz Ooal Gown!”

 

She didn’t seem the least bit interested but a passing curiosity led her to raise her head. The same skeleton whose mouth didn’t move spoke with a regal manner. It no longer gave off the same feeling of despair when she had first set eyes on it.

 

“I intend to establish a program to train and raise adventurers within my country. This is because I consider it advantageous for my country to both cultivate and protect adventurers, and send them travelling to various places in the world. Many adventurers must survive with their own resources. But how many have been cut down before they reached their prime?”

 

“...Therefore, I intend to incorporate the Adventurer’s Guild into my nation. There are those who fear that they will lose their freedom and be shackled down once the Adventurer’s Guild becomes a national organization. I cannot completely rule that out. However, like I have just shown my strength is more than adequate. I do not intend to use you as tools for war. The Sorcerous Kingdom thirsts those who truly seek adventure! All you who wish to explore the unknown, who wish to understand the world and thus dream of becoming adventurers, come to me! I will help you stand on your own, with the aid of power you cannot imagine. Now behold a fraction of that might!”

 

Even with hulking armor that trained warriors would find trouble carrying, it moved with such ease towards a corpse situated yards from the door.

 

“The Martial Lord is dead! Who will verify his death?”

 

She glanced at the unmoving corpse beneath it and the corpse of her sister. It was obvious to her that they were both dead.

 

“Death is the end of everything. Yet ―as some here might know, death can be fought off.”

 

She watched as he pulled a wand seemingly out of thin air and pointed at the motionless carcass.

 

“Witness this!”

 

As if something stirred in the unmoving corpse, it sprang back to life with a single cough.

 

“Resurrection magic is the province of high-level priests. However, it is not a challenge for me! That said, the appropriate payment in gold must still be made! I, who have conquered death, shall back you up! Come to my nation, you who seek to become true adventurers!”

 

Resurrection magic.

 

Upon hearing those godly words, an epiphany seemed to fill her head with countless incantations. She had no explanation for it but she felt as if she could perform the same exact magic.

 

The pool of blood turned into a radiant gold as if it swallowed up Uleirika. The viscous liquid moved to cover the wounds; she basked in a dim luster while the strange fluid repaired the damaged parts.

 

“Amazing... Unkei, what tier is resurrection magic on?”

 

“This one believes it was fifth-tier or possibly above. Blue Rose seems to have a member able to use resurrection magic.”

 

“You’re telling me that this kid is already on par with Blue Rose?”

 

“To be able to see that monster capable of using resurrection, an undead bringing things back to life. And now, a kid using the same spell. Isn’t that just hilarious?”

 

“Chief, what we gonna do with these kids?”

 

“To be honest, I don’t know. The fact that she didn’t turn into dust must mean this resurrection spell is a higher tier. And that monster, just advertised for us adventurers to visit his country. It might be a good time to do some reconnaissance.”

 

“I heard they got some orphanages built in E-Rantel so maybe we could, ya know, drop them off?”

 

“And let that monster discover their talents? Say, just who are these kids?”

 

The men conversing turned to face Kuuderika whose face was buried in the pristine, white dress of her sister presumably crying out of pure joy. Seeing that her sister had been successfully revived gave her a newfound feeling of hope. She didn’t know who or how it happened but the skeleton that had done the same thing to the diseased body in the arena probably had done it for her. That being said, she wanted to meet her savior, the almighty being that defied her sister’s death sentence. Optimistically speaking, she also wanted to ask if he had met their older sister as a being that’s that powerful would somehow manage to tell her some kind of information.

 

One of the men, who wore a chain shirt and a lute on his back, approached the kids.

 

“Hey there, are you guys lost?”

 

While his voice maintained the aura of a dignified leader, his concern for them perverted his speech, showing restraint.

 

“―”

 

Her voice was still silenced by the excruciating pain that stabbed at her whenever she spoke so she winced trying to let a few words escape.

 

“Unkei, use your healing spell, it seems this one is badly injured."

 

As ordered, the man wearing a strange hat raised a staff which ringed noisily and clasped his hands together as in a prayer.

 

A green aura enveloped Kuuderika, slowly closing up the wounds on her legs, returning the discolored skin back to normal, and releasing her of her torment.

 

“Can you speak now?”

 

The weirdly dressed man spoke once again, prompting her to answer his original question.

 

“Y-yes.”

 

“Whew! Good, I thought you might have been that monster’s underling or something.”

 

“You can’t joke about this, Chief! Look at ‘em, one’s unconscious and the other just saw her sister revived. Can ya imagine?”

 

“Perhaps my joke’s a little unsavory but let’s not forget the two dark elves who wiped out the empire’s army in an instant. We can’t afford to let our guard down.”

 

“I guess...”

 

“My name’s Freivartz and this one is Seyde. The one who healed you is Unkei. We have two other members, Fan Rong and Powapon, but they’re currently surveying the area. So how about it? What are your names?”

 

“Kuu―Kuuderika Eeb R-Rile Furt. My sister, Uleirika Eeb Rile Furt.”

 

“Nobles? What are they doing here?”

 

Freivartz couldn’t hide his surprise as the only people who would have a long name such as their’s are the nobles of the empire but these two clearly didn’t show as if they were nobles. More importantly, what happened with their parents.

 

“Chief! I know these kids! ‘Member that one kid with that natural talent.”

 

“Hmm... what was her name again?”

 

“Arche! She was a member of Foresight, the expedition ‘member?”

 

Kuuderika couldn’t believe what she was hearing, the people in front of her had heard of her older sister. More than that, they called her by name meaning they should know of her whereabouts.

 

“Ah, so that means...”

 

But nothing about their facial expressions told any good stories. Her raised expectations faltered at his grim news. She wouldn’t give up so easily, however.

 

“My sister! You know her?”

 

She asked in hopes of hearing a miracle of sorts. While her sister being saved from death made her mind numb, the possibility of saving the other member of her remaining family fueled her ability to think. She needed to take advantage of this before her chance slips.

 

“Sorta... Kid, I’ll be honest, your sister is dead.”

 

Dead. The word rang throughout her blank mind. It devastated her hearing that her beloved older sister was simply... dead.

 

“No... No! If that thing can revive my sister then it can revive her too!”

 

She clung onto the last gospel of her salvation. Even if Arche was dead, if she could plead with the one who called itself Ainz Ooal Gown, she would even give up her humanity to have her sister back. Uleirika would agree as well as Arche meant more than their lives, she was their entire world.

 

“Well... I can’t disagree with that, but that thing hates the living. I don’t think it could even listen to reason.”

 

“No! I don’t care!”

 

She was adamant in rescuing her missing sister now that she figured a way to reunite with her, nothing could change her mind.

 

“Ay Chief, I don’t think it’s a good idea to bring them along.”

 

“No, there’s no other choice. Many adventurers would want to flock to his kingdom now that they’ve seen his ability to support them on their quests. We have to use this opportunity to investigate the kingdom and make plans with Blue Rose.”

 

“Chief, this one agrees with... ‘Dark Cloud’.”

 

“Hey now, now ain’t the time for jokes.”

 

“Sorry, this one couldn’t help himself. But there is danger in bringing the little ones with us to that kingdom.”

 

“You too huh... Okay, we’ll have to settle with this. I can contact Princess Renner to manage them for a small while. This way, that monster wouldn’t be able to discover Kuuder― it was Kuuderika right? Her natural talent. It was rumored that siblings of natural talent holders were more likely to develop their own talent but to think it allowed her to use resurrection magic.”

 

“No complaints.”

 

“As you wish.”

 

The two other men agreed readily with their leader’s decision.

 

“Okay, now that we’ve got that settled. Are you two willing to come with us? We’ll tell you as much as we can about your sister.”

 

Kuuderika disregarded their talk as it contained hard to understand words but nodded her head in agreement when she heard that they would inform her of her sister.

 

“Go tell Fan Rong and Powapon that we’ll be heading out. We’ll stand guard here.”

 

“Yeah, yeah...”

 

The party of three decreased to two as they watched Uleirika sleepily wake up from her short-lived slumber.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Wow, little do they all know. We'll just have to see where it leads as for now, I'd like to thank the string of unfortunate events that had to happen to give me the amount of free time to write this in a couple of days. All jokes aside, I'd like to thank the one person who continues to support me through these tough times and those who read this, thank you. I know that the way I write is fast paced (they go from the streets to where Ainz is, I know, quick) and I wish I could write better to describe the story I envision in a much qualitative manner but I hope you put up with my slow improvements. Lastly, small edits might be added in later to make continuity make more sense so there's no real need to go back to reread if I do make adjustments.
> 
> By the way, I've reread Volume 10 so many times that the foundation of Ainz's kingdom is through a series of misunderstandings which I find super hilarious so why not add onto the list of misunderstandings? Also, I figured out a way to extend the story to a whopping five chapter story arc! Amazing... but I'd have to wait until Volume 12 comes out on September 30 to make sure none of my ideas clash with the canon details so for now, I'll release 4 out of the 5 chapters and see where it goes from there.


	3. Princess Renner

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Whoo! Wrote it in three days with ample editing! Exciting!

Kuuderika counted the amount of times the sun had set to keep track of the amount of days passed since their departure from the Baruruth Empire’s capital. Her concentration lacked due to the noisy squeaks of the carriage they embarked on. It couldn’t be helped since they took great lengths to travel through the mountains that separated the Baharuth Empire and Re-Estize Kingdom on route to the city of E-Libera. It was only a route known by experienced travelers and distasteful criminals alike to avoid crossing through the Fortress City of E-Rantel.

 

“Four... Or was it five days?”

 

“Sis! How can you forget something so easy? Four!”

 

Her cheerful sister recalled the exact amount of days that passed.

 

“Uleirika is cunning...”

 

“Kuuderika is also cunning?”

 

They liked to tease each other playfully but the source of Kuuderika’s offbeat response wasn’t due to being unable to count the times the sun set, but the number of days since her sister was welcomed back into the world. When she questioned her sister, she would be unable to remember the events leading up to her death but she didn’t quite understand the details of that moment either. The last clear memory she had was of the skeleton calling itself Ainz Ooal Gown marching towards her and crying atop her sister though, she does know that the sister before her was formerly dead.

 

On top of that, the people who are currently escorting them explained to her their situation and how she slept for an entire day yet she still couldn’t understand what they had gone through. The man who called himself, Freivartz, gave them food, beddings, and information on their beloved older sister, Arche.

 

Information about the exploration teams was kept hidden from normal adventurers and government officials so without the proper permission from Jivcniv himself, there wouldn’t be any way to know about the contents of the request. It wouldn’t mean it would be impossible to gather information, however, as the ‘Silver Canary’ had a member that held deeply rooted connections with the underground guild in the Empire. From there, they were able to scrounge up the number of teams who accepted the request as well as the collateral damage that resulted from it. It wouldn’t be hard to investigate individual team members either but since Arche had already made a name for herself, getting information about her was simple. There was one thing they didn’t know though, Arche had sisters.

 

When workers or adventurers become what they are, details about one’s family isn’t known. It is common knowledge that most adventurers usually shy away from conversing about family as it might lead to their ransom or they might be coerced into doing something. Furthermore, their own status is kept hidden so learning that Arche was a noble appalled Freivartz. 

 

She could have lived a life without the discomforts of being a glorified monster exterminator as a noble. In fact, Freivartz was convinced after learning of her family’s situation, she could have been the one to succeed her father’s title and regain their nobility status. Her potential in leading might have been overshadowed by her youth but given time, there was no doubt that her accomplished abilities, extraordinary connections, and the support she would receive from her sisters, she would have made out to be a fine noble. Words, however, are merely just words.

 

For now, Kuuderika depended on the strangely dressed people as they appeared to be cooperative. It was strange, however. Arche had once told them stories of the heroic teams that were adamantite-leveled adventurers and judging from what hanged at their necks, it would seem this was the team Arche was fond of. There was no basis for her conclusion rather, relied solely on intuition.

 

She gazed out the carriage window listlessly while her sister enjoyed playing with a red-haired beastman by grabbing small patches of his fur. She would have enjoyed playing along with them but for some nights now, she would be troubled by what Freivartz had told her.

 

_ “Your sister was revived by that monster.” _

 

By that monster, he indicated it was the same skeleton being, Ainz Ooal Gown. If this was true, then her older sister could be reunited with them. If she was dead, that thing would only have to repeat the same actions for the Martial Lord. It was only a matter of compensation and locating her body. Of course, it would be more advantageous to them if Arche was simply missing but thinking optimistically hadn’t given them much of a lead. Logically speaking, her last request had to be the cause of her disappearance or death but no one had a clue of what it was.

 

Why Freivartz kept this hidden from her was to prevent any more contact with that monster and hopefully monopolize on her ability to use resurrection magic. Even her own talent was kept hidden from her.

 

Their current plan was to find a stable housing for themselves to which Freivartz answered by giving them a lift to the Re-Estize capital and situating them into the newly inducted orphanages meant for the children whose fathers perished at the battlefields. It was announced by Princess Renner who visited it often which meant they could easily find a reliable caretaker to avoid having her talent being discovered while they performed reconnaissance on E-Rantel and other major cities.

 

Kuuderika wasn’t able to remember much of what happened but there still remained the clear voice of Ainz Ooal Gown.

 

_ “Resurrection magic is the province of high-level priests. However, it is not a challenge for me! That said, the appropriate payment in gold must still be made! I, who have conquered death, shall back you up! Come to my nation, you who seek to become true adventurers!” _

 

To her, two things came to mind in order to fulfill her selfish wish: One, Ainz Ooal Goal mentioned that only adventurers would be able to fully utilize his support; two, she needed payment as well to be able to use such luxuries.

 

From this, she surmised that Arche suited the conditions of an adventurer thus she too, would need to become an adventurer. Though would they accept someone as young as her? She furrowed her brow in displeasure.

 

“Sis! Sis! Fan-fan is asking if you’re alright.”

 

There were four people inside the carriage: Unkei, Fan Rong, and the two of them. Right now, Freivartz was the carriage driver while Powapon trailed behind them to watch for any danger and Seyde scouted ahead.

 

“This one thinks that they are still recovering. Isn’t that right... Fan-fan?”

 

“Ugh, really?”

 

“Forgive this one’s improper joke.”

 

Thinking ahead might prove to be beneficial for many people but there is no merit in believing that a plan would go as expected hence, Kuuderika paused her mental struggle for another time.

 

“Mhmm! I’m alright.”

 

“Is that so?”

 

Unkei narrowed his eyes, and with his garment, made him look menacing rather than a hero. Kuuderika frowned at his sour appearance but without a moment’s notice, he had gone back to his regular carefree expression. 

 

They still had a day and a half until they reach their destination so it seemed Uleirika was the first to nod off in the soft embrace of Fan Rong’s fur. Kuuderika drowsed off using the edge of the carriage window as a pillow.

 

She felt a warm sensation raise her head but her senses were too numbed to accurately pinpoint the source though soon after, her head was released back into the coziness of feathers and her body was surrounded by a comfortable, lazy warmth.

 

。

。

。

 

“We still have some ways until we reach E-Libera, you should get some rest.”

 

“Now who’s making the jokes?”

 

“Hmph, suit yourself.”

 

“How is the one clinging to you?”

 

“Fine, the one I’m worried about is that one.”

 

“This one thinks so too. She’s unusually... smart for one’s age.”

 

After a brief silence between the two conversing as if to check if they were being listened to, they resumed talking.

 

“Is it true?”

 

“Yes, this one saw it.”

 

“What about her?”

 

“It seems she has no talent but time will bring forth better news.”

 

“Hmph, alright.”

 

“This one thinks you’ve grown attached to them?”

 

“N-No! They’re just children, I can’t help but wonder.”

 

“Keila will be making contact with Princess Renner when we arrive at E-Libera. She is trustworthy enough so be at ease.”

 

“My instincts are restless around her, are you sure she’s trustworthy?”

 

“Your instincts are always like that around royalty, please do not worry.”

 

“I hope it’s just that.”

 

“Eh? Fan Rong, look...”

 

“Ugh...”

 

The world muted itself in wake of the becoming scene of Uleirika slowly drooling onto Fan Rong’s ruffled fur.

 

。

。

。

 

“I hope I have met Albedo-sama’s expectations.”

 

The girl lowered herself on one knee while keeping her right hand over her chest. A spectacle as such, a princess lowering her head to an unknown woman could only be seen as awkward. For the two, however, their positions were indeed correct.

 

An extravagant ―no, devilish, mature woman clad in an exquisite, white dress that defined her curves was the envoy of the Sorcerous Kingdom of Ainz Ooal Gown, a person who held the highest position made available by the Supreme Beings, and the one who personally addressed herself as the Sorcerous King’s wife. Her beauty held a forbidden allure as her pitch-black wings and pale horns defied human limitations. She was all but human.

 

“Do not think we are satisfied with simply meeting expectations, strive to surpass Ainz-sama’s expectations.”

 

A cold response to the princess’s warm reception.

 

“Of course, please forgive my foolish statement.”

 

Lowering her head even further, the girl let a smug smile slip out from the depths of her twisted personality.

 

“Apologize by showing the fruits of your efforts.”

 

“Yes, my exalted mistress.”

 

“Ainz-sama and I will be watching closely... please do entertain us.”

 

Her ominous words reflected the two’s similar tastes as they both couldn’t help themselves to a quiet giggle. It was a sight to behold but those with prying eyes would never be able to live to tell the tale of Princess Renner’s wicked laugh being able to exceed Albedo’s own mischievous cackle.

 

。

。

。

 

E-Libera is located relatively close to the capital but it requires you to go out of your way. As such, the large city doesn’t specialize too much in trade unlike its sister cities: E-Rantel, E-Pespel, and E-Asenaru. But being isolated from a degree of trading, it developed its own specialty particularly in developing weapons. Needless to say, the city has an abnormally high amount of craftsmen, blacksmiths, and tailors because the Azerlisia Mountains was easily accessible for raw minerals. Not only that, the Great Forest of Tob provided additional raw materials such as herbs and lumber. The city was favored to be visited by adventurers once they amass enough wealth to improve their equipment.

 

From an adventurer’s perspective, the city had a lot of benefits to make the city their primary base but it lacked something essential: uniqueness. Aside from its uncommon amount of specialists, there wasn’t much to say about it whereas E-Rantel hailed as the base for Momon, the leader of Darkness, E-Pespel boasted of exotic goods arriving from the Dragonic Kingdom, and E-Asenaru being a port city with fantastic views of the ocean. There isn’t much to offer for adventurers and tourists to stay but even so, the city didn’t mind its lackluster.

 

The members of Silver Canary preferred to visit the city whenever they went to the Re-Estize Kingdom to make amends to their equipment and to replenish their consumables. There was another reason why they liked to use this city opposed to E-Rantel since the city didn’t stand out, so did they. The city was a perfect candidate for people who sought refuge from public eye though, it didn’t matter to whom it applied to, criminals and adventurers used this advantage.

 

As part of their incognito entry, they took off their adamantite medals, unequipped their conspicuous armor, and wore inferior armor in order to blend in with their fledgling adventurer persona. The only one who didn’t do so was Seyde who would continue onto the capital to establish communication with Princess Renner. Their weapons, however, couldn’t be hidden from sight but they can be mistaken for regular common objects such as Freivartz’s lute. The reason for all of these hassling steps was to avoid commotion that an adamantite team is in town. Everyone knew that Silver Canary is based in the Empire although now it wouldn’t hold true since Jivcniv would soon announce vassalage to the Sorcerous Kingdom so if guards saw their adamantite medals, it would cause a massive uproar.

 

This did have disadvantages to it as they could no longer head straight into the entrance and would have to wait in line for entry. One by one, the carriages that waited would be checked before being signaled in. Wagons that had goods were waved in swiftly while passengers traveling would have to undergo a magic search, a physical search, and brief questioning. The process was tedious but it has dramatically decreased illegal activities.

 

Freivartz and his team were inspected the same way as other visitors and questioned the same. When the guards checked inside the carriage, they found no one inside nor did they find anything suspicious with the luggage and so, they were waved in.

 

The guards weren’t wrong, it was that Seyde’s skills misdirected their attention elsewhere and were unable to focus on him, Kuuderika, and Uleirika who were sitting inside. For the thief class, this was the common way to enter without raising any suspicion but only skilled thieves could pull it off as the entrance guards had a magic user who would be able to detect magic. So on top of deceiving the eyes of the guards, he had to deceive the magic user by making it as if no magic was used. The magic he used would need certain supporting skills in order to be successful but it wasn’t too difficult for Freivartz to lend a hand with his set of skills.

 

Once inside the city, Seyde loosened his grip around the twin’s mouths. The one weakness of his magic was that if a sound was made while it was cast, it would wear off immediately. He had no other choice other than to ensure that they would make no sound.

 

“Sorry ‘bout that. Hope it wasn’t too uncomfortable.”

 

“Hmph! Wash your hands next time!”

 

Uleirika pouted being treated like so but she was fully aware why they needed to do that. Seyde explained beforehand that they needed to be completely silent but it seemed she wasn’t too complacent with separating from Fan Rong’s heavenly fur. It wasn’t straightforward for Fan Rong to enter due to being a foreign race but wearing full armor would hide his body. Instead of looking like a beastman ape, he appeared like an overweight knight.

 

“My hand ain’t dirty!”

 

“Yeah, they are!”

 

The two argued like little children  ―one was actually a child so Seyde was the only one who acted childishly.

 

“Hey, quiet in there!”

 

Freivartz knocked on the carriage roof to defuse the situation.

 

“We’re almost to the inn. Wait until we get there before you start picking fights, Seyde.”

 

“Wha... Me? She was the one who starts this ‘hole mess!”

 

“She’s six and you are?”

 

Seyde grumbled at his leader’s provocation, “Twenty-four...”

 

“Yeah? So act like one.”

 

They stopped in the entryway of an unglamorous building with a worn down sign that read “The Hunter’s Ailment” which at first glance would sound like a terrible name for an inn but once inside, the building unexpectedly turned into a splendid display of artistry. The name was supposed to defy all first impressions which gave its residents a comfortable sense of feeling once seeing the interior. Aside from that, the inn housed mostly platinum and mythril adventurers with an occasional orichalcum. They chose this inn to suit their persona of being mythril adventurers, nothing more.

 

All but Seyde unpacked their belongings and headed inside the building into the room they rented for the night.

 

“Alright Chief, I’ll be off.”

 

“Be safe and don’t make unnecessary trouble.”

 

“Yeah, yeah...”

 

Seyde departed for the capital which should take half a day to travel but traveling back would take another half so he wouldn’t return until the next day. This gave them the opportunity to maintain their weapons, repair their armor, and restock on replenishables.

 

Kuuderika while holding Uleirika’s hand, better to say that Uleirika held Kuuderika’s hand, headed inside with the remaining team. They didn’t have any luggage with them other than the clothes they wore so they walked with Fan Rong straight to their room.

 

“Okay, Powapon.”

 

Without making much sound, the totem shaman warded the room with his magic to prevent people from eavesdropping. Seyde was usually the one to do that but since he was the only one who could travel the fastest from here to the capital, they relied on Powapon’s secondary support.

 

“Now that’s settled, I will need to go to the Adventurer’s Guild and gather some information regarding the Sorcerous Kingdom. Powapon, can you handle restocking our supplies?”

 

The man whose body tanned black with white symbols drawn on him nodded.

 

“Fan Rong, I assume you understand that you can’t exactly leave the room.”

 

Fan Rong lifted up a hand to stop him from continuing as he already foresaw his leader’s decision.

 

“Unkei, can I trust you to watch over these two?”

 

“This one will protect them.”

 

“Accompany them to buy some new clothes for them.”

 

“You sure about that Chief? I don’t think he’s the best person to be buying clothes for children.”

 

“...Fan Rong, I don’t think you even wear clothes beside your armor.”

 

“H-Hey!”

 

“To see the leader make a joke worthy of putting Keila to shame. Truly an honor.”

 

“Get them fresh new clothes, don’t worry about the price. It’s a girl’s honor after all.”

 

“Seems like your wife is affecting your thinking.”

 

“Note taken Fan Rong, I’ll be sure to tell my wife that.”

 

“N-No wait, don’t! I’m begging!”

 

“The serious Fan Rong is amply begging for forgiveness. As expected of the leader.”

 

“I’m off then.”

 

“C-Chief, are you serious about telling your wife?”

 

“I’ve already sent the message.”

 

With his parting words, the wooden door shut tight.

 

The distraught ape beastman stripped off his armor once Freivartz was out of sight to rest on the bed after an exhausting battle of wits against him.

 

“Oh? So you do wear clothes.”

 

“I-Of course I do!”

 

The two girls listening to their conversation giggled at his misfortune. Witnessing the close relationship they all had reminded Kuuderika the same relationship she and her sister have with Arche. It would be nice if they end up finding Arche but... where do they begin?

 

“This ignorant one will be your clothing advisor for the day but as you can see, this monk is bald and wears the same kasa every day.”

 

“Don’t forget about the dumb hat too.”

 

“I don’t know about that, I personally find the hat appealing.”

 

“Yeah, coming from a totem shaman.”

 

“Thank you Powapon. You could learn something from Powapon, Fan Rong.”

 

“Ugh...”

 

“I’m off as well then. May you two find something worthy to wear.”

 

He waved goodbye to the two little girls whose smiles contrasted the rough dresses they wore. Uleirika’s dress was in better condition than Kuuderika’s but to say they didn’t look shabby would be a lie.

 

“Shall we go as well?”

 

“”Mhmm!””

 

The two, excited for their first time shopping for their own clothes, nodded vigorously.

 

。

。

。

 

Under the retreating cover of the bleak sunlight rays, a strange man passed through the massive fortress walls of a grand city. Entering from the sewers might have been too obvious for him so he opted to enter from above. Finding a blind spot from the guards positioned atop the walls, he slithered through without making any sound. While all of this occurred, the guards continued their talk of Momon or complaints about their wives, unaware of the uninvited guest who stealthily went by their noses.

 

If the unwanted visitor had malicious intent, it would have been devastating to the city but, the visitor simply needed to go by unnoticed. Rest assured, the guards had no chance detecting the sneaky shadow-walker as he was the adamantite adventurer, Keila No Seydeshtin who was not only proficient in handling assassinations but also well versed in executing absolute stealth. It was only necessary for someone who used to be in the underground world to be able to perform at least this much.

 

Since the skies still retained a few twilight luminescent rays, the amount of effort he placed in his cloaking ability as well as soundproofing his hands and feet had to be doubled. Once over the wall, he needed to scale down safely. There would be no need to do that because he leaped feet first to the ground, covering over fifty meters in an instant. His enhanced boots absorbed most of the shock but there still lingered the electrifying, prickling sensation throughout his legs.

 

“Ahh! Shit!”

 

He cursed his reckless behavior but recovered as soon as he heard footsteps walking towards him.

 

“Yeah, and that bitch! I went and *hic*”

 

His ears picked up the ramblings of a drunk chatting away, with who continued to be a mystery. As his sloppy voice drowned out into the distance, Seyde let out a small sigh of relief. Right now, his priority was to make contact with the princess of this kingdom without being spotted out by any sort of individual.

 

It would have been easier to walk through the front gate using his adamantite plate as his ticket in but giving information would give the other side a tip as long as he didn’t have a reliable network of information built in the city. Every precaution he took was so no one would be informed of his arrival.

 

Now in order to make contact with Princess Renner, he would have to be able to bypass the countless guards, maids, and butlers within the castle. In other words, he had to surpass the finest guards selected by the royal family through sheer will. Being tasked with an impossible assignment heated his blood. He was thrilled to finally take on something that might lead to his death if handled poorly.

 

He wasn’t going to let that prevent his progress, after all, he still needed to pick more fights with a small child.

 

As for his preparations, he casted [Invisibility], [Silence], and [Darkvision] on himself. The spells were basic in terms of stealth but he wouldn’t be risking anything.

 

In addition to the three spells, he cast another silent incantation before completely melting into the shadows below him. The spell he cast was a ninja class skill [Shadow Dive] that allowed him to completely become a shadow. While a shadow, he can only move where shadows lie. The setting sun provided an easy route inside the royal castle but the real challenge was inside. At many intervals of the castle halls, stood a guard illuminated with a magical device. Learning this beforehand would give him time to prepare but time was not something he could afford at the moment.

 

Finding a room with a window would permit him to scale the outside walls, a maid walking down would provide the perfect cover, or he could uncover himself and disguise himself as one of the guards. These were all viable options but he chose to go with the least troubling first, finding an alternate route where guards are exchanging posts.

 

His experience as an assassin led him to memorize the structural design of many important potential targets so it eased some of his burden slithering through the unknown hallways. He didn’t have much time gathering intel on who resided in which room but according to his memory, Princess Renner’s room always had a maid stationed outside her room. At the very least, he just needed to find a maid waiting outside or he’d have to check every room.

 

Finally, as if his prayers had been answered, he discovered a dimly lit hall. It bothered him that the castle defenses were this lax but he needed to take whatever he could. He traversed down the hall, avoiding the areas where the light hit. The spell would wear off if he touched any source of light but luckily, it would take a fixed amount of mp to cast again rather than a continuous drain.

 

“Ara~?”

 

The voice he picked up couldn’t be traced back to any origin rather, for the first time, he couldn’t detect the source of the voice in the endless hallway. His eyes paced throughout the hall to see if a person might have accidentally discovered him or if someone outranked him in detection but found no one. Of course, he could have mistaken the voice being directed at him so he continued stalking through the shadows.

 

“A rat?”

 

This time, the voice sounded closer. The hair on Seyde’s body raised and his heart palpitated. Has he been discovered? There shouldn’t be any living person that was able to surpass his stealth with the exception of Blue Rose’s Tia and Tina who was the same class as him and perhaps Momon but they shouldn’t be here.

 

He grew agitated but being a shadow paused many bodily functions such as sweat though, he would have sweated through his clothes by now. He needed to focus on the task rather than worry about the aimless words echoing throughout the halls.

 

“...Rats should be killed.”

 

The lustrous voice was clearly right next to his ears.

 

There was no mistaking it, he had been found out.

 

He turned his body harsh enough to crack his spine but nothing was there. It couldn’t be made up, the voice seemed too real and the sensation of someone watching him sent actual tremors down his back. Someone was skilled enough to see through his stealth and have the audacity to toy with him.

 

He sensed an immense killing intent coming down from where he entered and he dashed as fast as he can travel through the shadows. He went down further into the hallway, avoiding specks of lights along the way before realizing he had no chance to escape. Something dangerous lurked behind him and moved faster than he can.

 

“Haha...”

 

The laughter faded away bringing its murderous aura along with it. Did it stop? Seyde couldn’t comprehend its reason. As an assassin or a thief for that matter, being uncovered was the same as death. He didn’t have many skills specializing in close combat but he was still attuned to the same level of an orichalcum warrior. Which meant that someone who could transparently see through him was of a higher level, possibly much higher than adamantite, the realm of gods.

 

A door opened wide to reveal a shimmering golden maiden dressed in an elegant white dress. Besides her was a shining white knight whose armor obnoxiously reflected light throughout the dismal halls. Being hit by light meant his spell would be effectively canceled. There appeared short, dark tentacles of darkness shriveling up to form a human body which Seyde regained his physical form.

 

“Ah! You must be Seyde-sama. Freivartz-sama messaged me of your arrival.”

 

The slight tilt of her head stopped Seyde’s cold sweat.

 

“Yer Majesty, I apologize for making an intrusion.”

 

“Not at all, though an earlier message would have sufficed. Please, come in.”

 

She gestured him to enter her personal room while the knight inside shook slightly upon spotting what hanged around his neck. He stood from his earlier blunder and entered without hesitation, forgetting the danger that coiled around his neck.

 

He took a seat across from her and noticed the tea cups filled without any evidence of being drunk from.

 

“Was I intruding on yer Majesty’s guest?”

 

“We’ve just finished moments ago, rest assured you did not interrupt anything important.”

 

“Is that so?”

 

He gazed upon the delicate decorations she filled her room with extravagant tea ware, various flowers living in the comfort of expensive vases, and complexly detailed wardrobes. The room was tidy as expected and free of cluttering materials.

 

“Would you like some tea?”

 

Princess Renner offered him a cup of tea, as one would usually do with guests. He graciously accepted her offer and took the filled cup from her hands.

 

“Freivartz-sama informed me of your arrival yet I can’t help but wonder why you couldn’t just use the front door. You are adamantite adventurers and acquaintances of Blue Rose, we would gladly welcome you.”

 

He swirled the liquid in the teacup before taking a sip of it. His eyes darted to the knight standing motionless beside her bed.

 

“Climb is my personal bodyguard, do not worry.”

 

“My apologies, I’m just a lil’ worried. Has Chief told you anything yet?”

 

“Aside from your arrival, no he has not.”

 

Seyde debated telling her everything his leader wanted her to know because he couldn’t quite get a grasp of her personality which was strange, to say the least. He doubted his instincts and begun describing what his leader had planned out.

 

“We couldn’t take the traditional way in due to unforeseen circumstances. I hear you run an orphanage?”

 

“I simply visit it.”

 

“Anyhow, we’ve picked up two stragglers that we can’t afford to take along with us. It’s a shame but we’ve come to ask if you could watch over them for us.”

 

Princess Renner lifted the cup to her mouth and took a couple of sips to wet her throat.

 

“I don’t see the need to be secretive. The orphanage takes care of any child in need.”

 

For a moment, he thought he saw something move in her shadow but wiped his eyes clear.

 

“That's where it gets interesting. The kids have natural talents so we would like to have a trustworthy guardian watching over them.”

 

“Natural talent...?”

 

He heard the knight whisper which should have been inaudible to a normal person’s ears but he was a trained thief.

 

“I see... What led you to think that I was the most capable?”

 

Her question was a natural one, if a person was to take care of someone else, they deserve to know why they were chosen.

 

“Blue Rose is kinda your friends, are they not? And so, putting them under your care would mean Blue Rose―”

 

“I understand. However, I cannot just use my friends like tools.”

 

“Well, we don’t mean it like that, we’re just being extra careful ‘round the Sorcerous Kingdom. These kids could use resurrection magic so we would like your assistance.”

 

“Resurrection magic?”

 

“We’re not exactly sure what their natural talent is but one thing’s for sure, they were able to use resurrection magic above the fifth-tier.”

 

While conversing with her, something about her eyes shifted dramatically. It was only a short second so he didn’t quite register it in his mind.

 

“Lakyus can also use resurrection magic.”

 

“Yeah, sure. I’ve heard of Blue Rose, Lakyus’s [Raise Dead] but we’ve confirmed it to be a higher tier.”

 

“Not many people know the spell Lakyus uses, those who did are now dead.”

 

The knight behind her trembled as if hearing the word dead shook him up.

 

“Fellow adamantites tend to be more open with one another. After all, if something that threatens humanity comes up, we would have to know each other’s strengths, no?”

 

It was a lie. Seyde investigated anyone that reached the pinnacle of humanity’s strength. From Lakyus’s magic to the Slane Theocracy’s scriptures. He would investigate team Darkness eventually as well.

 

“It is as you say.”

 

At this point, silence enveloped the two’s conversation. Seyde was countlessly inspecting every aspect of her, she seemed off to him but he wasn’t about to doubt his leader’s decision.

 

“What are their names?”

 

“They’re twins, I think. Kuuderika and Uleirika.”

 

He didn’t mention their extensive last names because it might deter her from accepting orphaned nobles of another country.

 

“What cute names they have. I’ll humbly accept your offer.”

 

“Hold on now. I’ve got to discuss the proper trade or it’ll shame our names imposin’ on a princess. For starters, we ask that you protect the two and hide them from the Sorcerous King. If anyone discovers that they could use resurrection magic, they would want to kidnap them.”

 

“Naturally.”

 

“In exchange, we’ll provide 500 gold coins for their safety. We’ll come back after some time and give an additional 750 for your troubles.”

 

“You plan to take them back?”

 

“Somewhat... our hands are tied at the moment with the Empire announcing vassalage so we can’t take them along, so maybe after a few years?”

 

He was disappointed to know that they couldn’t take them with him because they’ll be going through several countries to gather information and they couldn’t leave something as valuable like them behind. Seeing their abilities first-hand ignited the instinct of an adventurer to preserve whatever benefits he could get his hands on but spending some time with them made him realize the depth of their tragedy. The stories they told about their foolish father, their idolized elder sister, and how difficult it was to live on the streets.

 

Truthfully, he resounded with their lives as he too came from a torn family that led to his eventual residence on the streets. He turned to thievery, however, opposed to the twin’s looking towards to people’s virtues. He wondered what if he had done the same as them, would he have lived a better life?

 

“I cannot guarantee for that long.”

 

“Chief expected you to say that. We’re just asking for you to hold onto them until we come back. They just need to live with the other children in the orphanage, ya know? Just being able to live a normal life is all we ask.”

 

“It is my sole duty as princess of the kingdom to ensure every citizen lives a peaceful life.”

 

“We don’t believe that there will be people after them since we’re the only ones that know but it never hurts to be sure.”

 

He took out a large pouch of coins from his waist and set it down on the table.

 

“We would have hired Blue Rose or Red Drop ourselves but we don’t have much time. If you can, split it amongst the members and tell them what I’ve said.”

 

“As I’ve said before, I’ll humbly accept your offer.”

 

“We’ll be coming by tomorrow to drop them off. This time, we’ll be using the front door.”

 

“It would be better if you did.”

 

Seyde stood from his seat and excused himself.

 

“Thanks Princess for being so generous. I need to regroup with my team now. ‘Cuse me.”

 

“Do take care.”

 

Seyde once again merged with the shadows and left the pair to themselves.

 

“Climb, could you go fetch the maid? She has yet to return.”

 

The boy lifted his hand over his heart before acknowledging her request.

 

“Yes, Princess!”

 

The knight withdrew from the room, giving Princess Renner absolute solitude. She raised her tea cup once again and sipped the remaining liquid. It had grown lukewarm during their conversation but she still enjoyed the taste of tea.

 

From the depths of her shadow, a monster apparated, exposing its bright eyes in contrast to the pitch black room. Her own eyes clouded, displaying the exact opposite of her usual gleaming shine. 

 

“Interesting... Tell Albedo-sama, we have something of interest.”

 

The Shadow Demon bowed before disappearing into Dark’s cold embrace.

 

The girl poured herself another cup of tea to which she greatly enjoyed its warm, smooth texture. She raised her cup in front of her, celebrating the good fortune that came upon her lap.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> At this point, I should just copy-paste my thanks. You know who you are who continues to tell me to keep going for it. I really mean it, thank you so much. But more importantly, I would like to thank you for reading this and hopefully enjoying it as much as I am. It might be confusing (Yeah! Wth is with the weird city names?) but there's an actual map of Overlord's world that I am using to my advantage. Volume 9 isn't out by official outside of Japan (Volume 10, where?) so you'll just have to trust me when I say these things. I mean you could also creatively look for it, I'm not condoning anything.


	4. Abandonment

“Sorry to call you on such short notice, Lakyus.”

“We are happy to oblige my friend’s request.”

“Not me, Princess.”

The room was filled with three girls of exorbitant beauty but if one were to judge who stood from the rest, there would be no doubt Princess Renner outshines Lakyus, the leader of Blue Rose, and Evileye, though her face hidden by a mask is still understandably adorable in her own right.

“Then please excuse my abrupt summon. It does, however, require your immediate attention.”

“I don’t see how anything could necessitate our immediate attention.”

“Evileye, there is a limit to how rude you can be.”

The three exchanged a conversation as if it were natural albeit Evileye’s transparent displeasure forced an awkwardness to wedge in between them.

“The fault lies with me, Lakyus. It was a sudden request although the contents are certainly intriguing.”

The other two widened their eyes in surprise. Anything that she found interesting would inevitably mean a new proposal to institute in the Kingdom and that would be enough to find a discussion in. Usually, Lakyus would be the one to associate with her so Evileye felt like a sore thumb not being able to read into her intentions.

“I have called you here before me to discuss the two children Silver Canary was fond of as well as their request.”

“..Eh? Children?”

“Your reaction is much expected, Evileye-san but, according to Silver Canary, these children were capable of resurrection magic.”

Lakyus choked on her tea while Evileye spat out a blaringly loud ‘Eh!?’. Evileye was too concerned with Princess Renner’s first words, ‘Your reaction is much expected,’ as if the word ‘children’ would intentionally damage her pride as a woman.

“It is not for certain if they could actually use resurrection magic just from Silver Canary’s own testimony but they were willing to part with 500 gold pieces for their protection.”

Once again, hearing the absurd amount of gold being carelessly entrusted over to her made the duo want to spit out their drinks. 500 gold pieces was, by no means, easily obtainable even for adamantite adventurers. The quests would go up in rewards as an adventurer’s rank rose but their expenses would normally follow the same course. Compounding on a team of five, their expenses would easily outweigh the rewards they reaped thereby imposing the question, ‘Where did they get all this money?’

“They’ve must have sold off valuable items to have that much on them.”

In agreement to Lakyus’s assumption, Evileye nodded her head.

“They promised another 750 gold pieces if the mission is successfully carried out.”

“...No way.”

“Their leader’s crazy to give a fortune away.”

Everyone but Princess Renner showed an expression of dismay at this unexpected amount of gold. Lakyus wasn’t too informed of Silver Canary’s members but hearing their accomplishments in the Baharuth Empire was notable of their fighting strength. She met with their leader before but it was nothing more than exchanging acquaintances as fellow adamantites.

“I should add that formally the request was for me but seeing that I am not qualified to take the request, I thought to pass the request onto your team.”

From her discussion with the thief, they did want to hire Blue Rose as bodyguards but seeing adventurers hire other adventurers could be seen as collusion under the guild so under the pretense of ‘not having enough time to do it themselves’, they sought out a person to act as the requester. Everything had to be documented as official so they wouldn’t cause an international incident questioning the power of adamantites. On the outside, the request would be seen as a quest requiring the assistance of an adamantite team since the request would come from the Princess who deemed it necessary. The contents would still be hidden from the adventurer’s guild as the request only needs a ‘suitable hire’ hence why Princess Renner was considered the perfect candidate for Silver Canary’s selfish request.

Moreover, they believed that if Princess Renner begins to frequent the orphanage to keep the children there company, it would improve the general public opinion of her further. In a way, the proposal was in her favor so there wouldn’t be any room to decline other than not being able to trust the authority of an adamantite team which Silver Canary could go public with and ruin her reputation. The proposal acted as a double-edged sword that would be used against her if she refused but at the same time, slashed away at the noble’s doubts of her assertion. Seeing that she had no option to refuse, she readily accepted their request.

“...Does that mean the Princess aims to hire us?”

“Not exactly, Evileye-san. I simply wish to borrow your team.”

“Oh, I think I understand now.” The one who comprehended Princess Renner’s words was Lakyus, “Since we’re already hired by the royal family for protection, we cannot just simply take another request. However, when the royal family submits another request to the guild, it would have to be under our current request. So to not raise suspicion, she will request us again but with an additional payment.”

“So the Princess is basically adding an extension to the current request?”

“Precisely. I sympathize with Silver Canary’s roundabout way of handling things.”

“As usual, Renner is too kind.”

“I am not worthy of praise, Lakyus as I using you for my own selfish needs.”

Evileye, who was in between of the two’s endearing compliments, furrowed her brow in irritation. She, too, did relate with their intimate, platonic relationship but her own progress with establishing a romantic relationship with Momon was at a standstill so seeing their relationship blossom without difficulties made her curse them in her heart.

“Now then, Princess, could you inform us of the request?”

“That is what I originally called you here for so seeing that Evileye-san is interested, I can safely assume you’ll accept it?”

“Yes.” “No.”

Lakyus and Evileye both responded with an opposite answer which made them glare at each other mostly in confusion.

“Aren’t you being a little hasty, Lakyus?”

“I think I’ve made a perfectly sound decision, Evileye.”

The normal way of accepting request was to hear out the details firsthand so they wouldn’t be roped into any kind of troubling requests. Thinking this way, Lakyus was the one who was in the wrong but Lakyus was the leader of Blue Rose, meaning her decision was final so Evileye opposing her leader’s decision was the same as questioning her ability to lead.

“There is no need to fight, I will proceed with the details and hear your answer then.”

She defused the tension building up between the two and continued on.

“A few hours ago, a thief passed through all the guards and appeared before my room. Being messaged by the―”

“Wait, the guards didn’t notice anything?”

“I wouldn’t say that Lakyus, the thief this time was Keila No Seydeshtin of Silver Canary, I wouldn’t blame the guards for being unable to do anything. The only ones who could detect through his stealth would probably be Tia and Tina.”

“Still... if this, Keila-san, plotted to assassinate you―”

“I had Climb with me so do not worry.”

The two sighed hearing Climb’s name because she placed every inch of her faith into the ability of the inexperienced knight. It was exactly because of her unwavering trust in him that made the two sigh.

“Anyways, the leader messaged me of his arrival and asked me to hear him out.”

The two listened carefully, fully understanding why rather plan the discussion out through a message, a capable person was sent to negotiate since there was a previous incident of trusting messages too much.

“He announced that I ran an orphanage to which I refuted.”

“...I don’t see the need to do that. Weren’t you the one who built it?”

“I’ve mentioned this before, Brain-san gave me the idea and built it as such. However, this man was not ordinary as the only one who should know that I built it are the members of Blue Rose and the royal family. Meaning that he did research beforehand and was able to successfully obtain information regarding my connection with the orphanages. I believe he was stressing that he is able to blackmail me if it comes to it.”

The two remained silent in awe of Princess Renner’s riveting recollection.

“Might I remind you that this happened after the diplomatic party I partook in so there wasn’t much time to prepare for his aggressive advances. He was concerned with requesting for my assistance in order to have Blue Rose act as my bodyguards while I visit the orphanage where the two children, named Kuuderika and Uleirika, will now live under. He specifically stated that they witnessed the kids being able to use resurrection magic, on who remains unanswered, that exceeded your resurrection magic, [Raise Dead].”

“...I see. This man not only has blackmailed Renner into accepting his proposition but is also aware of the spell I use and while not specified, I assume he is willing to reveal my magic if we refuse.”

“Indeed. It is a very troubling proposition despite the attractive reward. They want to protect these children as much as possible.”

“Wait a moment.”

“Yes, Evileye-san?”

“I understand that we’re forced to accept this request or have our trump cards revealed. It’s quite underhanded but I wonder why go through this much trouble?”

“Thinking from their perspective, I can see why they would want to go this far for these children. If what they said was true, a spell far superior to Lakyus’s [Raise Dead] would give them the safety net they needed to go on more dangerous requests. Not only that, he asks that they would return at a later time to fetch them.”

“To monopolize resurrection magic and expecting that we would have to dance to their tune... Silver Canary is ruthless.”

“I cannot agree entirely with that statement, Evileye-san. From what I’ve judged, he seems to have some lingering attachments to these kids. If not, I believe the whole team does too. They were adamant in ensuring their safety after all.”

“I can relate to them. Seeing the dead bodies of our members after their fight with Jaldabaoth filled me with such anger.”

Seeing her leader brimming with a silent, seething rage made Evileye flinch reflexively. She remembered the intense battle with Jaldabaoth and Momon that would have certainly killed her if she got caught in the crossfire.

“As I’ve said before, he already gave the promised 500 gold pieces and promised another 750 gold if we are able to successfully complete it.”

The pair rested their hands on their chins to contemplate the captivating offer. They were adventurers up for hire after all.

“I’ve got three questions to ask, Princess.”

“I will answer to the best of my ability, Evileye-san.”

“First, why do you need me here if Lakyus was all you needed for us to be on board?”

“Regarding that, I thought you had the most experience with natural talents being one yourself. So perhaps you would be the one most suited in investigating their natural talents.”

Evileye clicked her tongue beneath her mask so the sound made was muffled. She regretted exposing the information of natural talents a short while ago because now she would be spearheading the investigation and being involved with Silver Canary’s announced property meant her secrets would be at risk.

“Secondly, have they allowed us to look into their talents?”

“They did not visibly express that we couldn’t but I find it hard to believe that they wouldn’t mind us investigating as you would be the best to discover their actual talent. Even if they were opposed to us investigating, they would have expressed it.”

“Alright, I can understand our position but I’ll ask my last question in case, what are the children’s real names?”

“That... I do not know. It is true they might have told me false information but nevertheless, we don’t have much choice. If it will appease you, I already have someone looking into that.”

Evileye still wasn’t satisfied with the meager amount of information relayed to them but seeing Silver Canary act with an enormous hostility, they didn’t have much to fight back with. Having Lakyus’s spell exposed would lead to an uprising of protests from the Magician’s Guild and the churches to exert further pressure on the royal family to give Lakyus up. Not only that, if the thief was able to gather that much information in a short amount of time, imagining his abilities when given enough time would allow a schism to finally occur with the nobles and the royal family. That is, if they choose to decline this request then the worst possible scenario would happen.

“I will not force you to agree but I would also like to avoid a civil war within the country so please understand that the royal family will not sit idly.”

“Even if we refuse, we’ll end up playing along anyways.”

“I apologize for the inconvenience but it is as you say Evileye-san.”

“Don’t be so gloomy Evileye! I’m sure Silver Canary has no ill intent towards Renner. Think of it as... overprotective parents.”

“We’ll have to try out many methods to have them discover their natural talents. How troublesome...”

The chit-chat of the three ladies concluded with Evileye’s resignation as the day drew to a close.

。  
。  
。

Even with the dreary outlook of the sky, three people walked side-by-side in the bustling marketplace of E-Libera. From afar, it looked as if their father was strolling with his two daughters but inspecting closer would reveal a painstakingly varied disparity. It would be safer to assume that the man adopted these two children who frantically led him around, frequenting shop after shop.

The shops they visited were all clothing stores, mainly tailors who would be able to create clothing within hours. While an ordinary feat such as tailoring would, at first glance, sound uninteresting, the fact remains that being able to accomplish something that ordinarily takes days within a matter of hours, was nothing short of extraordinary. It was proof of their mastery.

They were measured beforehand so they were now collecting the final product. At the same time, the one who accompanied the small children wore an inquisitive gaze at their fashion sense. To him, seeing the twins deliberately decide on opposite colors while keeping the same design perplexed him, more so on their choice of having only dresses and a few sleepwear. But even with a flawed fashion eye, the man could see they preferred wearing dresses.

He walked over to the owner of the store and handed him proper compensation for his excellent craftsmanship. In addition to buying clothing, he had them outfitted with their own set of necessities in a small knapsack around their back primarily filled with dried fruits, the few sets of clothing they bought, and a potion of healing. The price he paid came out of his own pocket but to see them radiate with such happiness filled the monk with a sense of accomplishment. Although it could be said that he didn’t mind giving his money away as it interfered with his religious teachings but one couldn’t be stingy while living an adventurer’s lifestyle so he kept his share of funds for situations such as these.

He was most relieved to see one particular child who now smiled along with her sister beam with positivity because her previous state of loathing didn’t suit the behavior of a child. In short, he was worried about the upbringing of these children. He felt responsible as a practitioner of the Buddhist faith to show compassion and empathy for their tragedy. HIs team shared this thought of his.

They traveled for a mere week, exchanging stories of their lives with the exception of the children often exaggerated details, their destiny would end at the streets of the Empire if it had not been for them. They had stolen enough gold to be executed on the spot yet had it not been for their leader’s persuasion, the guards would have brought the final memory of swinging their deadly swords down the child’s neck. In the Empire, everyone was treated the same under the law so it was common to have children learn the laws first and curb their rebellious attitudes using the death penalty. It was effective to make children obedient even if there were cases of jailing children who didn’t know any better.

At first, everyone but his leader was opposed to bringing them along in case they were being used as puppets by the Sorcerous King which wouldn’t surprise them since they witnessed an incredible sight. As time gradually passed by with exposure to their personalities, they’ve grown attached. A factor may have been their ages which could attribute their desire to start a family since they were around the right age to do so.

Regardless of the reason, they found a kinship with the twins. If their natural talents were practical in combat then it wouldn’t be hard to train them up as adventurers that would later take up the name of Silver Canary. It was wishful thinking but not improbable.

The trio left the marketplace and returned to the inn where they were stationed at. Their leader hasn’t returned but their remaining party members were all there.

“Welcome back, Keila.”

“It wasn’t that hard.”

They expected him to return around midnight since the travel time would consume much of the day but seeing him return a few hours than expected meant he purposely rushed back.

“Is something―”

“We’ll talk ‘bout it when Chief returns.”

He preemptively stopped Unkei’s question perhaps out of consideration of the two children whose journey with them would end soon.

“This one thinks it’s time to go to bed then.”

Unkei, who still held the small girls’ hands, led them to a different room. The room they rented had three beds and giving one for Kuuderika and Uleirika to share meant they used the two remaining ones. They took turns resting while the others would stay awake to maintain their gear and keep watch of anything suspicious. But since one bed would be preoccupied, two members would not be able to sleep at all.

The two were drowsily wiping their eyes to try to stay a moment longer awake but Uleirka’s eyes drooped too much so she had to be carried onto the bed. It was a lovely scene with two innocent children pressed against time before the sandman did its job. Being tucked in the comfort of the blanket, Uleirika drifted into a deep slumber. Meanwhile, her sister, Kuuderika, refused to aimlessly sleep without hearing a bedtime story.

“This ignorant monk doesn’t know any stories that would be suitable but will try to meet expectations.”

He pulled a chair and started his story while gesturing his hands to emphasize the suspense.

“There once was a prince who saw the evils of the world. He mourned for the victims and wished to stop all of the suffering. He searched for a way to reach enlightenment and found that he was the one who needed to change. He changed and became the symbol of peace for his followers. He would bring about fortune to the ones he met and would teach them his principles so that they may spread the joy he experienced.”

“That’s not... a fun story...”

“No, it isn’t. This one would like to apologize, stories are a mystery.”

She snickered at his shortcomings yet appreciated his attempt.

“Good night!”

“Yes, rest easy.”

The candlelit room flickered as Unkei pinched off the flame before leaving for the main room. He placed one hand to soften the door’s audible hinges as it closed and checked on them once more in the crack of the door.

“I guess now’s a good time.”

Freivartz had come back while Unkei was tucking in the twins so all of Silver Canary were accounted for.

“What happened on your end, Keila?”

“Er, ‘bout that Chief. I get goosebumps ‘round that castle. I did some scouting and well― the Sorcerous Kingdom sent an envoy there.”

“Did you see who it was?”

“No, I didn’t get a chance to and I wouldn’t go back if my life depended on it. I getta strange feelin’ about the royal palace.”

“Do you think it’ll affect our current plan?”

“Well― I don’t know. If ta rumors are true then I don’t see why they need to send envoys. ‘Sides that, I don’t think anyone even knows them being housed at ta orphanage other than ta Princess.”

Freivatz mused over simply bringing them along to his wife and having her raise them which would also serve as practice for when they have their own children. It was tantalizing to do that but it would be going against the wishes of Kuuderika who desperately wanted to search for her older sister. Ignoring her wishes would strain their current relationship and possibly deny them taking advantage of her gift, they also wouldn’t be able to restrain her in the house. There was also the possibility that her natural talent goes rampant and effectively take his wife with her. The demerits surprisingly outweighed the benefits.

“This one believes they are planning to do something in the Kingdom.”

“I sense this is unwise to send them off there.”

“I’ll second that. Chief, if ya think ‘bout it, a foreign country that has ta strength to obliterate a country, sends an envoy ‘nstead. It’s too strange.”

“...What do you think Fan Rong?”

“At our current fighting strength... we are not able to protect them at all times.”

Upon hearing each opinion of his teammates, he delved further into thought. What Fan Rong said was true, if they left a member behind to keep watch over the twins, their fighting strength would considerably lower because they all covered a certain weakness of each member. Having one member stay behind meant they could still operate better than a mythril team but fell slightly behind a team of orichalcum. They reached adamantite level due to their exceptional team composition and cooperativeness as did other adamantite teams.

“Considering our options, I recommended the ‘Golden Princess’ because she has connections to Blue Rose so binding her to the kids would guarantee their safety but I understand where you’re all coming at... I have to make a difficult decision don’t I?”

“We could always pull back on the deal but I doubt the Princess would let Keila roam free after blackmailing her.”

“Tha’s where you’re wrong Powapon. I didn’t explicitly blackmail her.”

“Yeah, I suppose you also didn’t tell her about Aindra’s resurrection spell so we could realistically rescind our request.”

“―!”

Seyde choked on his spit or perhaps the regret that formed as soon as Powapon offered his verbal support.

“Uh― Well...”

“It’s a little late for that, I did tell you to do that so the fault lies with me.”

“Sorry Chief.”

“As I said, it’s my fault for giving you that order. I think we should proceed as planned. While it is unknown why the Sorcerous Kingdom sent an envoy, perhaps they do have reasoning and aren’t just warmongers, the ‘Golden Princess’ is a reliable contact and we do have enough coercion if they fail to uphold their part. We will have to first set up an information network in E-Rantel to learn what the Sorcerous King intends to do with the Kingdom.”

“Hold on, what happens if the Princess is somehow connected with the Sorcerous Kingdom?”

“It’s a strange question, Powapon. This is the person who thinks of the people despite having low influence. It would be strange to have any motives to work together with them.”

“I am only asking the worst scenario.”

“Better to be prepared. In that case, we’d have to send Keila back to retrieve them without being spotted. Though at that point, it would already be disastrous enough that we might have to consider abandoning them. We can’t have any fatalities.”

The ambiance around them grew somber as if the worst scenario had begun playing out without them noticing. Seyde cleared his throat to ease the stiff atmosphere.

“I believe ta Royal Family is gonna hold a concert tomorrow and negotiate after.”

“Do you think you can retrieve the contents of their negotiation?”

“Something was able to detect through my camouflage. I think it was that envoy. I can’t do that, Chief if the envoy will be there.”

“We are going up against an unknown enemy so it better to assume they are much stronger than all of us combined. Better to not take any risks around them then. There’s not much else to discuss so we can all head to dinner except Fan Rong.”

“Ugh... bring me food at least.”

“I’ll rest up first, Chief. I ate along the way.”

As their discussion concluded, Seyde went to sit on the edge of the bed as they left for dinner. Thinking back on his espionage, it would only make sense if the unknown envoy was the one who taunted him. He could have been killed there but instead was allowed to be free. The weariness from that time had now caught up to him and he experienced what truly felt like fear. Whoever had let him go, clearly showed the difference in their strengths by playing around like a predator who allowed their prey to squeal as they ran in terror. His instincts defined a line of what opponents he could handle and that unknown voice was miles ahead.

He shuddered violently as he resisted the urge to puke but he kept a composed expression as to not show weakness in front of his teammates. He had experienced countless near-death situations and built up an immunity due to the numerous inhumane acts he committed himself yet the feeling of being stalked for their entertainment perturbed his sanity.

Were they really going to pick a fight with the Sorcerous King? The strengths of a human was limited but the strengths of an undead was unimaginable. No fatigue, no hunger, boundless power, immortality, the list could go on forever but they don’t have one thing humans have: stupidity. It would have to be plain idiotic for anyone to go against an opponent that could slaughter 180,000 people in an instant but idiocy is what paves the way for courage, hope, and faith. The band of stupid adventurers who called themselves at the peak of humanity now aimed to be the first to draw their sword against the monster and hopefully more would follow.

Seyde chuckled as he thought of this, it helped distract him from the close call from death and roused himself to be optimistic.

“Speaking of which.”

He went to check on the sleeping girls as a temporary escape from the horror. He had another reason coming in the room as well.

“Give it up, I know you’re awake.”

Though it was pitch black inside, his vision was accustomed to the absence of light and was able to see clearly a stifled scurrying making the blankets tremble but no one responded. In spite of this, Seyde sat down beside the bed, with the bed frame behind him and his knee bent upwards to provide an adequate perch to rest his right arm.

“Ya know I knew you were listenin’... we won’t take our words back.”

As he spoke, the blanket quivered intensely and small whimpers could be heard underneath the thick cover.

His words were harsh but they were for the team’s well-being while luggage picked up by them were only a second thought. They did care for them but in face of the growing threat that would eventually antagonize all of humanity, their priorities lined elsewhere. But as proof of taking responsibility, they’ve provided the best safekeeping they can afford.

“We won’t take that long either... We’ll come back. I promise. ‘Sides, we got someone who really loves to take care of runts like you.”

He paused to debate an internal struggle of his.

“Your sis... I’ll find her too.”

He froze immediately after; a mumble in the still emptiness of the night would have gone unnoticed but there was no denying what he heard.

“...I hate you.”

“Yeah, kid... I do too.”

。  
。  
。

In light of the new day, a carriage pulled by two horses left in the opposite direction of the orphanage, leaving behind two small figures whose leather backpacks magnified their short height. Of the pair, one waved back while a stream of tears ran down her petite face but the other showed her back in contempt. Her eyes were puffed up from crying excessively and being sleep deprived caused her to deteriorate faster.

She would have liked to refuse being dropped off like this but her weak spirit made it difficult to resist. At least, they would be this much closer to realizing their goal, finding their older sister. If they remained in the Empire, they would have continued to be beggars until they forget their older sister’s warmth. She couldn’t be angry with their generosity.

Yet, she had thought they would be their saviors by finding their older sister. She thought they would continue to protect them. She thought they were their new family.

She had been betrayed once yet the sensation of being betrayed a second time stung her heart, leaving a deeper cut than its predecessor. Her sister might still be clinging to the foolish hope of them returning or their older sister being returned to them, as for her, she sealed these feelings away. Getting involved with their fruitless search had brought them painful experiences. It was here she decided to live normally with her twin, ending their lost cause.

“Sis, is something wrong?”

Her sister, Uleirika, sniffed intermittently to stop her snot from passing the point of no return.

“Ah! Sis!”

Kuuderika’s cheeks puffed up to atone for her sister’s careless behavior. She reached around her back and took a small handkerchief out. She wiped her eyes and drool off almost making Uleirika look presentable.

“Ehe, thanks.”

“We’re on our own now, we got to take care of each other.”

“Hn? They said they would come back?”

“Onee-sama also sai―” She caught herself from shattering her sister’s illusion, “Until they return then.”

“Onee-sama too!”

“...Until Onee-sama returns too.”

She clasped her hand with Uleirika’s own. They went up to the wooden doors and pushed it open using both of their bodies.

A single flaxen ray illuminated a sliver of the room and at the end, sat a gorgeous woman who emitted a comparable glow as her golden hair reflected a part of the light. A figure adorned with an elegant ivory dress matched by the teacups simmering with a soft vapor. Besides her, stood an impressive set of armor that shined extravagantly yet the recipient contrasted her dignified aura with his rough face. As if it were out of a fairytale, the woman spoke tenderly to the two.

“Welcome. I am Princess Renner and I will be taking care of you as of today.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'll keep it short. Thank you for reading. Thank you my sole supporter who I haven't talked to for some time. I finished BotW (100%). Yay. Time for Star Ocean. Yay. I ordered Vol. 5 and Vol. 12 is preordered. Yay. Last chapter (maybe more) in a month or two. Boo. Have a nice day!


	5. Epilogue

“Onee-sama!”

 

An endearing voice scrambled towards the person of interest who comfortably sat around a wooden table. There weren’t any decorations that could be considered opulent or apt for a person of her standing but visiting an orphanage meant that she would have to make do with their provisions, not that she minded either.

 

Fumbling with her steps, the child propped herself up onto a chair to sit across from the elegant woman. She was received with an amiable smile and a lukewarm cup of tea. Her actions were the target envy from the other children in the orphanage.

 

The ‘Golden Princess’ appeared to take a special interest in two certain twins and the other children would brazenly voice their opposition. A child’s mind is fickle, however, so after spending a couple of minutes with them, they went back tending to their chores, some took a nap, while others grouped up to play games.

 

For a while, Uleirika and Kuuderika approached Princess Renner with caution as if her kindness were an act but Uleirika was the first to become friendly with her. Her casual call to Princess Renner could be seen as disrespect since she was royalty but the shameless nickname of a child would obviously be overlooked. Calling her with a too familiar name would result in Kuuderika lecturing her to be more mindful but she would often forget her sister’s words and continued to do so.

 

The same friendliness was reciprocated by Princess Renner as she spoke more informally towards them.

 

“Uleirika-chan, how are you today?”

 

“I’m doing well!” From being elated to crestfallen, there’s only one reason why “Sis looks sad...”

 

“Is that so? It wouldn’t be a tea party with only two people...”

 

“Ah! Can sis join?”

 

“She is welcome to join us anytime.”

 

Given permission to have her sister participate, she waddled off back to their room to fetch her sister. Kuuderika had grown reclusive since arriving at the orphanage a few days ago, barely making any contact with the other children (only doing so when Uleirika asked her to join) which made the caretakers worry about her strange behavior. They didn’t do much about it since Kuuderika handled her share of chores without complaint and she tended to fill her free time with reading but it mainly had to do with the request of a special existence.

 

“Sis! Sis! Can you play with me?”

 

Uleirika didn’t mind her sister’s lonesome nature because she understood better than anyone that she was recovering. She couldn’t tell what from what and since her sister refused to talk about whatever affected her, all she could do was to trust her sister’s capabilities.

 

“Do I have to?”

 

She whined about leaving the current book she was reading. Reading at her age was considered a rarity, even more so when considering the literacy rate of the inhabitants of the world though, she wouldn’t have taken up learning how to read if it hadn’t been for Princess Renner dispensing her own resources for their benefit.

 

“Onee-sama want you to come!”

 

Hearing her sister call a stranger ‘Onee-sama’ made her flare up in indignation. 

 

“Have you forgotten about our real sister!?”

 

She snapped at her and immediately grew meek. She reflected on what she had done. True, she was the one who convinced herself that Arche would never return as well as the members of Silver Canary so why did this sudden burst of anger come forth? Perhaps she deluded herself with these negative thoughts as a way to cope with reality where in fact, they would come back for them.

 

“N-No!” Startled by her outburst, she hid behind her hands and became unable to speak.

 

The consequences of her actions had shown instantaneous results. They were supposed to be the closest in terms of relationships but clearly Uleirika fearing her own sister revealed a damaged bond. The guilt piled up in Kuuderika’s mind but she forced an apology out.

 

“I’m sorry sis... Let’s go play.”

 

In response, Uleirika managed to nod and prevented herself from tearing up. They clasped their hands together and headed out to where Princess Renner set up.

 

They had been thoroughly explained about Princess Renner’s reliability by Frievartz to the point of being told they could treat her the same as they would with them. To spite this, Kuuderika had done the complete opposite but her sister followed through with their words. 

 

Kuuderika would always find an excuse to refuse Princess Renner’s invitation. Not only was it because of that, she felt a peculiar premonition about her. Such things could only be attributed to a child’s sixth sense which could be disregarded for being false but in this case, something about the tea parties felt superficial. There would be no way for her to confirm her suspicions so she had no choice but to think of it as distrust towards strangers but even then, it didn’t quite fit the picture.

 

“Glad to see you can join us Kuuderika-chan. How are the books I lent you?”

 

“Good...”

 

“I was surprised to hear you wanted to read. Being able to read while young is extraordinary. Did someone teach you?”

 

“N-No, I am still learning myself...”

 

“If you wish, I can provide some assistance. Perhaps we could read a book sometime together?”

 

“Huh? O-Okay.”

 

As she thought, Kuuderika couldn’t keep her wariness to a minimum. She still thought Princess Renner as an odd entity despite all of her goodwill. Without delay, the Princess poured them a cup of tea, ensuring beforehand it wasn’t too hot for them to drink.

 

Kuuderika looked in the murky, brownish-black liquid that showed a partial reflection of herself. She wasn’t particularly thirsty but the memory of Arche scolding them about their manners, specifically rejecting a drink from someone of higher status, made her sip on it slowly. However, if it was Arche who taught them manners was questionable.

 

Did she care about their manners?

 

Her memory was hazy as if recalling the one she called ‘older sister’ only increased the clouds that shrouded her memory. It’s natural for children to forget memories as they grow older so her gradual forgetfulness is said to be part of that process. However, natural processes such as these happen years later so the accelerated pace could derive from her own willingness to repress her memories.

 

She renounced their search for their older sister despite coming this far because she was afraid of losing her current sister. Uleirika departed the world of the living once where if it hadn’t been for that skeleton, she wouldn’t be happily conversing with a strange beauty. Even so, her mind and body refused to accept giving up on Arche. If there is a small chance of recovering her older sister, then it is a chance worth investigating.

 

She raised her teacup to drink but in her deep thought, she had unknowingly finished it.

 

“Allow me to refill your drink.”

 

Princess Renner gracefully lifted the teapot with ease and, while pressing down on the lid, poured her another cup.

 

“T-Thank you.”

 

“Pay it no mind. I hope you can feel at ease around me.”

 

The Princess saw through her uncomfortable feeling which made her shy away.

 

Her eyes hurriedly wandered onto a young knight who stood silently behind the Princess. She looked at him begging for his help and her gaze matched his. Through a series of unspoken words, the knight struggled to keep his expressionless posture. It was clear he wanted to say something to Princess Renner but something stopped him.

 

“Onee-sama is so pretty!”

 

The knight heard Uleirika’s compliment towards Princess Renner and a wobbly grin broke his rigid posture.

 

“I cannot possibly compete with your adorable looks.”

 

They exchanged compliments though, the Princess remained unfazed while Uleirika giggled immaturely.

 

Interrupting their peaceful tea party, a pattern of knocks appeared behind the door that the knight stood beside. They realized the meaning behind the unusual set of knocks and opened the door for their other guest.

 

In the doorway was a short, black robed figure with the only discerning apparel being the mask it wore with its ruby inlet in the center forehead. The mask’s eye slits covered most of the wearer’s eyes too, barely making it recognizable that behind it was an actual person. Nevertheless, the knight greeted the mysterious being without hesitation.

 

“Evileye-sama, I―”

 

“I don’t have time for needless chatter.”

 

Her brashness could come off as rude but the knight understood her situation. She was assigned to security since the Sorcerous Kingdom’s envoy prepared to take their leave so her duties were rather hectic.

 

“It’s alright, Climb. Evileye-san is busy so we’ll finish this quickly.”

 

His master’s words were absolute so he stepped outside to not intrude on their conversation.

 

“These are the shorties?”

 

“Indeed.”

 

Kuuderika scanned the unfamiliar person. Her slim waist with her modest body figure looked as if she were their age. She was still taller than them and her voice sounded disembodied, taking the sound of an old woman and a young woman. She then glanced towards Princess Renner, hoping to discern if mysterious person was friendly from her reaction.

 

She took two vials of a blue liquid out from under her cloak and presented them to Princess Renner.

 

“These are...?”

 

“These are the potions imbued with the 3rd tiered spiritualist spell I talked about before. It wasn’t easy finding someone who could cast it, let alone being cast onto two potions. Talk about expensive.”

 

The woman underneath the mask scoffed haughtily.

 

“They’ll work by ingesting them. If there’s a reaction, then we can confirm Silver Canary’s assumption.”

 

She maneuvered herself in front of Uleirika and handed one to her. She did it all very hastily, allowing no time for her sister to question the glass container. She, too, was treated the same. The potion was pushed into her hands and uncorked in front of her.

 

“Drink.”

 

Having just met the bizarrely dressed person, her common sense wouldn’t let her to just drink the liquid that wafted with a bitter smell. Her sister agreed and they both looked to Princess Renner for directions.

 

“It’s alright. Evileye-san is here on my orders so it is safe to trust her.”

 

“Your orders?”

 

The figure rebuked the Princess’s words feeling offended at her choice of words.

 

“Is it not true?”

 

While it wasn’t the entirely true, the request had been under her name so it is only right that it was considered as an order. Yet, both parties knew that Lakyus was the one who sent Evileye down here. Tia or Tina, even Gagaran, could substitute for Evileye so it wasn’t as if she was even needed here. It was due to her expanse knowledge of natural talents that she was chosen to go and to adapt if they somehow went beserk.

 

Even knowing all of this, she couldn’t refute her words because it would lead to an unnecessary argument which would take time to resolve, time that she didn’t have.

 

“Hurry up and drink already.”

 

Being irritated didn’t help ease Kuuderika’s worries but seeing Princess Renner gently nod, urging them to follow her words, calmed her stirring heart. Something about her image began to look heavenly, a sanctuary to shield them from the horrors they’ve experienced. Trusting this warm feeling of her’s, Kuuderika gulped down the liquid in an instant. Judging from the smell, she expected it to taste the same but instead, it tasted like water.

 

“Ewuk!”

 

Her sister seemed to differ, however. She scrunched up her face in reaction to the potion’s bitterness and stuck her tongue out to allow the air to extract the horrible taste.

 

Princess Renner shocked expression matched the robed person’s own body language.

 

“Didn’t Silver Canary say they both had natural talents?”

 

“They only speculated since they witnessed them using resurrection magic but perhaps Uleirika-chan is the only one with this ability?”

 

The potion guaranteed information regarding confirming the existence of a natural talent but information regarding specific details of the natural talent would be left unanswered. At the very least, they now know that Uleirika was confirmed to have a natural talent while Kuuderika did not.

 

“Onee-sama, what is a nat-urr-al ta-lant?”

 

Having never heard of the phrase before, Uleirika asked Princess Renner. Questioned in earnest, she placed her cup down on a saucer and began to explain.

 

“It means that Uleirika-chan is special. You are able to do things other people aren’t able to.”

 

“Ehe, really? Oh! What about my sister?”

 

“Well since she showed no reaction to the potion, it seems she doesn’t have the same ability as you. Not to worry, Kuuderika-chan is still cute!”

 

To Kuuderika, it didn’t mean much to her that she had no special talent rather, she was appalled that her sister was the one who harbored an amazing ability. She wasn’t envious of her sister but furious.

 

Up until now, she believed that Seyde, Frievartz, all of them, took care of them because they suffered. It didn’t take much to connect the dots, however. They took care of them because they knew about her natural talent. They wanted to use her for their own gain but what about it was wrong?

 

True, they might have had ulterior motives for acting as their temporary caretakers but so what? She renounced them in her heart. How could she get mad at them for acting in a way that’s advantageous to them?

 

In short, this was nothing but the lingering affections of a child. She didn’t liked to be abandoned, twice even. She didn’t like how her sister effortlessly forgot their the point of going along with them. She didn’t like how she couldn’t allow herself to be spoiled by Princess Renner. She treated herself as if her childhood ended as if the responsibility of being born a few seconds after her sister meant she needed to be the one who grew up.

 

It was unfair. She wanted to take part of the carefree tea parties. She wanted to be doted on by Unkei, play with Fan Rong’s fur, and have Seyde compliment her. But most of all, she wanted her older sister to tell them stories of her travels, teach her more, and hear the wistful dream of living with only her and Uleirika.

 

Her aggravated daydream was interrupted by the figure clad in darkness.

 

“There’s some truth behind their words after all. I’ll be back with Lakyus to test out various methods to identify her natural talent.”

 

“Please send my regards to Albedo-sama.”

 

“Hmph, that woman? I wouldn’t want to be involved with the Sorcerous Kingdom anyhow.”

 

Evileye’s concern was only justified through Princess Renner’s position as part of the Royal Family so being overly familiar with a foreign country, one that recently attacked them too, would appear traitorous.

 

“I am unable to do so myself since I am here but I would like to express my gratitude towards their endless generosity.”

 

She didn’t participate in yesterday’s negotiations since her position was far from allowing her but even so, her influence on her older brother still affected the direction the kingdom would go towards greatly. Her preparations were mostly completed and now, she would soon collect on her older brother’s words that gave her a domain and the ability to adopt any kids in the orphanage. Last but not least, the item she received from Albedo would soon meet peak conditions to be used. If anything, all she needed now was patience.

 

Evileye nodded and left without speaking another word. Once she stepped out, the knight resumed his solitary stance inside.

 

“I apologize for Evileye-san’s behavior towards you two.”

 

“N-No... it’s fine.”

 

Surprisingly, the one who spoke up was Kuuderika. Her anger vanished hearing Princess Renner’s words of comfort.

 

“If Kuuderika-chan says so, then it must be true.”

 

She was referring to her defensive nature preventing her to be more open but sensing an opportunity for her to quell her preconceived notions, she opted to trust Kuuderika’s shy words.

 

Whether Kuuderika was able to deduce this was irrelevant to her own current thoughts as she felt a resounding relation with Princess Renner. Slowly, she was able to trust the stranger in front of her as per her former guardian’s words.

 

Thinking about Seyde’s words back then made more sense now that she was confronted with Princess Renner’s kindness. As well as... Frie... rts?

 

She had difficulty in remembering the faces of her previous guardians which in turn made it hard to connect their names. They did act with impure intentions but changing the fact that they took care of them meant that she kept them close to her heart so why did she have so much difficulty in remembering them?

 

“Ah, forgive me. We’re supposed to be enjoying the tea party and you don’t have any tea.”

 

She took Kuuderika’s tea cup and poured another serving of its murky, brown contents to which she gracefully returned once filled adequately.

 

“I don’t suppose I could also ask if Kuuderika-chan can call me onee-sama?”

 

If she detested hearing Uleirika calling Princess Renner as if they were related, what purpose would it serve by having her do the same? Her mood fouled but after washing down the thoughts with a small sip of the delectable tea, she found herself questioning herself.

 

Was it really time to move on?

 

Surely if her older sister were to be alive, she would want them to be as happy as possible so in a way, she was only obstructing her dear sister’s final wishes. Of course, she didn’t want to defile her last memory of... what was her name?

 

The image still remained in her head: Golden hair, a delicate personality, and her warmth but it was only this much she can remember before the nerves in her brain refused to work. Being unable to remember the point of their endeavor, she wanted to cry out in agony but her eyes trailed to the stranger in front of her.

 

Golden hair.

 

Delicate personality.

 

And the warmth she longed for.

 

Was this not her older sister and if not, how can she possibly refute the evidence she thought of?

 

“I-I... Okay, onee-sama.”

 

。

。

。

 

The sound of a paper being crinkled echoed throughout the extravagant halls decorated with countless marble pillars adorned with numerous details that if an architect were to compete with, they would find it easier to give up on their profession. At the end of the long hall, stood a massive iron door guarding the person within or better to say that the door was being guarded by the person within. It was simply because of his power that would make everything, inanimate objects too, tremble with a delightful fear.

 

However, the scene defied his monstrous powers as he sat behind a modest desk, reading a mountain of papers.

 

The being in question didn’t have eyes so it was another mystery how he could read but nevertheless, he skimmed through the papers, voicing his surprise whenever he found something to be interesting but kept his composure. Not for himself, but for the maid who idly stood next to the door who raised her eyes every time she heard her master get intrigued.

 

He did this so they would have some kind of interaction though, he hoped she would get curious enough to ask what made reading the reported interesting so he could have someone to talk to. Of course, he understood that the maid would never speak up nor would he because the expectations of being a ruler meant he needed to keep up appearances.

 

He sighed in his mind but routinely kept this up in the slightest chance the maid would alleviate his weary thoughts.

 

“Ainz-sama.”

 

The maid was the one who broke the silence first.

 

“Permit me to speak.”

 

“Umu.”

 

His nonchalant flick of his skeletal wrist was the signal she waited for before continuing.

 

“I have been informed of Albedo-sama’s safe return to the Sorcerous Kingdom.”

 

“Is that so? Then I shall go welcome her back.”

 

Truthfully speaking, ever since he saw Albedo off, he was worried he had gone too far entrusting her with this large of an errand but even an overprotective parent would have to give up and trust they had completed it perfectly. He also wanted to find a reason to get away from the reports that continued to pile up but this reason comforted the mindset of a compassionate ruler, one he wanted to emulate.

 

“Before that, I need to reward Neuronist.”

 

He got up, which the maid reacted by opening the doors for him, and left promptly to not keep Albedo waiting.

 

Remnants of the creases made by his skeletal fingers undid themselves to reveal the contents of the paper.

 

[Natural Talent Holders]

 

Reading more into it would reveal detailed information regarding every individual within their current territory, the Re-Estize Kingdom, Bahruth Empire, and every land that surrounded them about their natural talents. Rumors, encounters, actual people, it was all included.

 

Coming into the New World, there was an existence of [Martial Arts] and [Natural Talents] that never existed in the world of YGGDRASIL and because of that, his curiosity as a collector and as a player meant he wanted to monopolize on this unknown power. Not only that, if he was able to grasp a better understanding of the power behind it, he would prepare countermeasures accordingly.

 

The proposition also contained reports of its current progress and the state of the plan to organize talent holders. It, itself, wasn’t remarkable other than the names it reported but the signature below was what allowed the report to directly reach Ainz’s desk. This was the first report of a new loyal subordinate of his so as his superior, he needed to make sure she was doing everything correct.

 

[It has been concluded that this individual’s blood can mimic spells and allow another to cast spells of several tiers depending on the amount of blood offered. The individual has been successfully brainwashed without any side effect. Proceeding with the current plan to raise them loyal to Your Majesty and to have them defect.]

 

[Glory to the Sorcerous King, Ruler of Death, Ainz Ooal Gown. Your humble servant submits to your will. -Princess Renner]

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Anyways, this is where I say my thanks to you, who read this all. If you'd like, below this is where I discuss my choices in writing certain parts, goals for writing this, etc. Read if you're interested, otherwise, it's just a wall of text.
> 
>  
> 
> I settled for a prologue, three chapters, and one short epilogue. It was so much fun writing this while spending hours just rereading every, cross-referencing the wikia, lurking through countless threads for information but it must all come to an end. I meant to leave them in the hands of Princess Renner's "warm" welcome but talking about a little bit what came after wouldn't hurt.
> 
> I had two goals when writing this:  
> 1) Build up the lives and personality of Kuuderika and Uleirika  
> 2) Expand on the large universe Overlord offers  
> Whether I reached them is up for interpretation but at least, I hope I have come to show you a small insight on another character's perspective.
> 
> After writing six drafts (not enough if you ask me), I tried to make them both appear like one entity at the beginning. Without the other, they would be bland but as the story progressed, I made it so that Uleirika inherited Arche's kindness, a mutation on her ability, and warmth that I go blabbing about. On the other hand, I made Kuuderika inherit Arche's intelligence, leadership, and tsun personality. I hope I have made it very clear at the end.
> 
> Lastly, I wanted to integrate the multiple unused cities in the map they provide and bring life to them before returning to the staple city of Re-Estize so hopefully, I shed some knowledge about the other cities (hopefully they're canon too). I also wanted to expand on the short-lived named adventurers of Silver Canary in Volume 10 before they just kind of disappeared. Anyways, I'm not that talented to consider what I wrote to be as good as Overlord itself but maybe, just maybe, the angsty screams of a fan would be enough to sway some favor for the other characters.
> 
> Before I consider this completely dead (meaning I'll never return to it), I want to point out several points:  
> Yes, Arche is dead in the LN whereas in the WN she's a... slave to her emotions (Heh) so I made it ambiguous about her fate. So either way, she could be alive in this story or not. It's irrelevant. She was also mentioned to live in the 6th floor with her sisters later in the WN but since it has been made a point that the story diverges somewhere around vol.7, I can't actually use it as a future event. So this is a mix between WN canon and LN canon or something entirely made up,  
>  either way.  
> Despite my efforts to use canon details as closely as possible, I believe that the story is going to address natural talents and martial arts much better eventually so the possibility of an outrageous ability like Uleirika isn't impossible.  
> Yes, I set up many plot points to go off on but as I pointed out in the beginning, these are children who won't actually do what they say or think of doing. I mean, I could be wrong but I stand by my choice of mentioning the possible ways they could handle their fate and dismissing it soon after because I believe, they just don't know any better (including me).  
> Yeah, I know my story summary thing is way off too, they barely show an inch of their teeth at Princess Renner. I wrote like six different variations on the general story I wanted to write and I tried to include conflict but it didn't feel right. I ended up doing a behind-the-scene all for the glory of Ainz and judged that it suited much better. In total, 138,000~ words written and scrapped all of it to write this much instead. Haha... maybe next time I'll actually be a good writer and publish the drafts as part of the story.
> 
> If you managed to read all that, I'd like to thank you. I hope to see you in whatever I write next.


End file.
